


The Lucky One

by AimsTheViking



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Amnesia, Depression, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, First time writer, Gun Violence, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rambling Dialogue, Recreational Drug Use, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:20:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 38,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22843948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AimsTheViking/pseuds/AimsTheViking
Summary: The Courier (henceforth known as Cee thank you very much), just wants to find out who he is, why he was shot and buried in a shallow grave, and a drink.  But every time he tries it’s one thing or another stopping him.  Just a rambling story from an anxiety driven amnesiac.Updates changed to bi-weekly.
Relationships: Craig Boone/Male Courier
Comments: 15
Kudos: 33





	1. Gratitude in Goodsprings

**Author's Note:**

> I love New Vegas, started playing it again and it inspired me to write my first story! So hopefully it’s entertaining, I will be a lot of dialogue but will get some action and romance <3 as well :3

Chapter 1: Goodsprings

The Courier stood in the shabby convenience store with arms crossed across their chest, they frowned at the floor as the young man behind the counter pleaded with him. They didn't want to be dealing with this. The headache they had since they woke up yesterday was threatening to split his skull apart. He uncrossed his arms and rubbed his temples.

“Please mister, all you have to do is get the town to agree. I know Sunny is all for it, and most of the town wants them gone anyways” The young man was Diego, and he had the unfortunate luck of pissing off a bunch of criminals with unlimited access to explosives. Explosives were nice, very nice, but dealing with other people's issues was not.

The only reason he was even standing in this stuffy place was a sense of gratitude he had, which was funny since it was his first time feeling it. He had a lot of firsts, he couldn't remember shit.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, making the mohawk stand out at odd angles. “Listen, I don't want to deal with drama that isn't mine” Diego began to start trying his sales pitch again when he was cut off, “but….I owe the town so yea I’ll try and rally the masses.” Diego seemed to collapse on himself, “thank you thank you”

The other man grimaced, how the hell did he end up here.

Two days ago he had a whole nother life somewhere out in the Mojave. It would be nice if he could remember what it was, but two nights ago he was dragged from the cemetery from his shallow grave and dropped on the local doctors doorstep. 

Diagnosis, bullet to the brain. Cure, none. Cause, no clue.

The doc had said from his bag that was dragged with him he was a courier for the “Mojave Express” whatever that was, so the townsfolk had taken to calling him the Courier. After the 30th time he was called that he begged Sunny to just call him Cee. He would get a complex if they kept calling him that. 

Cee had then continued with his streak of cluster fuckery by walking into the bar to overhear the heated conversation between a man in blue with the lady behind the bar. He had groaned, cause the only reason he even went into the bar was cause Sunny asked him and he owed Sunny. He sure as hell couldn't remember how to use a weapon (and the gun still felt weird) plus caps would get him to whatever his next destination was.

This all leads to now, Trudy asking him to talk to Diego to avoid a dust up, and now that he was involved he couldn't just let the poor kid or town go boom (though it would look pretty damn cool….from a distance….a safe safe distance). Outside the store he leaned to the side until his head thunked on the soda machine out front. At this rate he’ll owe the entire town and be stuck doing morality errands for them until he is old and gray.

Well if he was lucky enough to live that long.

  
  
  


Ok, convincing Sunny, easy. Trudy, easy. That little coward in the general store, easy easy with a bit of a glare. Doc gave that it was not a great idea, but it wouldn't change that somebody was probably going to get shot so might as well cough up the medical supplies. Easy Pete, was scarily easy. The conversation had started with scavenging and ended with an in depth conversation on charge types and the gunpowder ratio used in a variety of demolitions. The man had been so thrilled to have what he called “an intelligent jaw” that he gave the dynamite over with a smile.

So, he felt gratitude to people who helped him and like explosives. Good to know.

  
  


The fight was shorter than he thought it would be. Six Powder Gangers versus a town. Joe Cobb was not a tactical genius, that or he vastly underestimated how much the town would fight back. Cee sighed as he watched Sunny whoop loudly causing her dog Cheyenne to bark and start running in circles around her. Diego had slumped against a wall, sliding down into a sitting position, his hands dangling between his legs, the pistol loosely held.

Cee walked among the corpse, ideally looting through the pockets and glancing at the weapons that lay on the ground. Some ammo, caps, paper money he assumed, more ammo, and….a baseball bat. He picked it up and tossed it up, flipping it and easily grabbing the handle again before it hit the ground. That felt right. With the knife he picked up and the ammo, he felt finally like he could start this journey.

Diego gratefully handed him caps and unsteadily walked into the saloon. Sunny walked up grinning widely, “That was fun, they wouldn't think were so easy next time”. Cee hummed in response while looking down the road. 

“Leaving us?” Cee looked back at her, “yeah….” and said no more. What could he say? 

“Going to find out who you are?”

Cee grinned, “naw, dont care, that's too much stress to even think about.”

Sunny frowned, “ so you're just going to walk off into the sunset not knowing anything?”

Cee smiled again, “sounds pretty damn good doesn’t it?”

Of course it wasn’t so easy to just start walking. Cee was impulsive (he thinks he’s impulsive….maybe) but he doesn’t have a death wish. He spends the rest of the afternoon bartering for more supplies and crashes back with the doctor for an early night. 

Early in the morning, with only the Doc up to wish him happy trails he headed down the road.


	2. Pitable in Primm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every. Fucking. Time. Cee growled internally as a bullet whizzed by his hidey hole. Did Powder Gangers just hate him? Did he piss in their Sugar Bombs in his pre-bullet to head life time? So far he had been lucky that the Gangers had not been throwing dynamite around, probably not wanting to damage their new home away from home. 
> 
> Cee’s shitty luck continues, and he’s tempted to rack up some bad karma.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! People have read this! I may have giggled to myself a bit.

Every. Fucking. Time. Cee growled internally as a bullet whizzed by his hidey hole. Did Powder Gangers just hate him? Did he piss in their Sugar Bombs in his pre-bullet to head life time? So far he had been lucky that the Gangers had been throwing dynamite around, probably not wanting to damage their new home away from home. 

When he had made it to the small town of Primm all he had wanted was some answers, maybe a drink, a drink would’ve been nice after fighting those little gecko shits on the road. But no, he first gets hassled by the NCR, even if he hadn’t wanted to go to Primm he sure as hell wanted to after they condescending little shit in olive green told him he didn't want to. 

Well another character traits of his to mark down somewhere if he survived this, contrary as fuck.

After snarking at the officer, he had strolled into town to immediately get shot at. He had ducked behind a building and began running, which was good cause a moment later a loud explosion knocked him to the ground. Fucking Powder Gangers. A few well placed shots from the rifle Sunny had given him had cleared the streets. 

He had found the Mojave Express office by tripping, over a dead body. He was not ashamed of the scream that came out. Well not scream, more a scared shrieked. Poor guy. Shaken Cee had stumbled to his feet as he mumbled an apolgy to the poor guy. Pushing the door as he looked away from the macabe sight. A few steps in he paused.

Empty.

Cee wanted to sit down and just cry. First he was shot, buried in a shallow grave and saved by a cowboy robot. Then he had to fight because he just couldn't leave a town of people who had been nice to him to be blown up. This was followed by gecko attacks, soldiers with attitudes, and more Powder Gangers. He didnt want much, just to fucking know who he was.

He rubbed angrily at his eyes with the flopping sleeves of his shirt and sniffled. God he was so fucking tired. He lowered himself onto the floor, puffs of dust rising up making him sneeze. He scooted up to the counter and laid his head back against it. Looking up, he saw a round mass of metal and wires sitting motionless on the counter. He sniffed and reached up patting it gently. “Hey little guy” Cee laid lowered his arm over his eyes and drifted to sleep while spiraling thoughts ran in the endless loop in the background of his mind. 

Waking with a start Cee panicked and slammed his head against the counter. Whimpering in pain he looked around and slowly realized where he was. “Dammit” he winced, standing up he stretched and patted the round robot again, “maybe I’ll see you around little guy”

Remembering this Cee had to remind himself that Doc Mitchell had advised him against cumulative brian trauma. So he suppressed the urge to bang his head against the walls of his bolt hole. The Gangers screamed obscenities at him while firing wave after wave of bullets at him. Cee was learning so many new ways to not only insult one’s mother, but several sexual positions he was pretty sure no brothel could produce. 

After walking out of the Mojave express office, he burst into the Vikki and Vance casino, where it turned out the Primm survivors were camped out. Cee had wondered where his life was coming to in the short time he was cognizant of it that getting guns pointed at him was just the normal. 

A stoic man had calmed everyone down, he introduced himself as Nash and asked his business. After Cee waved his package slip, Nash drawld the he was the head of this branch of the Mojave Express. Cee felt his chest hurt as the man shook his head saying he didn’t recognize him, but did remember the odd package he had been carrying.

The chip. Cee frowned as a vague image of a man flipping a large silver poker chip into the air as he gestured a gun towards Cee’s face.

“The game was rigged from the start” Cee muttered.

“Uh pardon?”

“Nothing, sorry go on”

Nash had continued about several other items, and a man refusing to take the job after seeing Cee’s name. His name had been on some paperwork that the invading Powder Gangers had burned. Cause a’fucking course, why not. 

Cee started taking quick shallow breathing trying to keep the hysterical sobs or laughter out as Nash rambled on, the pressure was making him a bit dizzy. Racing thoughts, he would never know. He would wander the Mojave nameless. What if he had a family, did they think he was dead? That he abandoned them? Did they care? Would he die alone...nameless...unloved??!!??!!

“..but he may know more about that guy you're looking for”

Cee came back to the conversation with a crash.

“I’m sorry what?”

Nash frowned, “you're looking for the fella with the checkered jacket right? Hanging out with some Great Khan looking guys? They came through a few nights ago. The deputy here had investigated them some before they continued on.”

Big sigh of relief, “ Yeah, that's great, where's the deputy?”

“Well….”

And now here we were. Cause karma was a bitch, Cee was now destin to run into every fucking Powder Ganger in the entire Mojave Wasteland. They had found the deputy snooping around no too long before Cee had gotten in, tied him up, and dragged him somewhere into the bowels of the rival casino Bison Steves that lay across the street from Vikkie and Vance’s.

Why a roller coaster, Cee mused, I mean that damn thing doesn't even work...I think. 

Bullets took off chunks of the counter as the Powder Ganger taunted him to come out. Cee grumbled “immature ass mother fuckers”, digging into his bag he found the dynamite tucked safely away. With a flick of his lighter he began to laugh, it didn't stop until after he flicked it over the counter and the explosion deafened him.

After dragging the deputy out from the kitchen where the Ganger’s had stored him, Cee was feeling deja vu, which was kinda interesting since it would be the first time he felt it. Deja vu, funny word. He had his arms crossed as the man droned on about how clever he was, and was just the bad luck of trodding on a carelessly placed nuka cola bottle that alerted the fugitives to his presence. 

“Listen Deputy, that's great and I’m convinced your fucking amazing at your job, but all I really need to know about some guys that came through here, dandy in a checkered jacket and two uhm “Khans” looking guys with him.”

The deputy made a big show of pulling from his back pocket and weather leather notebook, he paged slowly, reading each entry. He made noises to himself, hemming and hawwwing and sometimes ahhhing! Cee thought to himself, he's the only law enforcement in town if I kill him and burying him in the desert surely no one will catch me. No, we’ve so far only killed Powder Gangers, and they’re bad guys, so we are currently good guys. Let's keep the streak up.

I really need to stop talking to myself. 

Cee was able to refrain from murdering the law enforcement agent in cold blood by his finally declaring that his superb detecting skills had surmised that the targets had left for Novac, by way of Nipton. Skills which involved hiding and eavesdropping. 

“By the way,now that I have helped you procur the information you so direly needed. You wouldn't happen to have the time to search for a replacement sheriff? Ours ran afoul of the villains here, and as deputy I must keep to my chain of command as a second, surely it would be no trouble for you…”

Cee took off running down the road “thankyousomuchforyourhelp, gottago!”


	3. Ne’er Do Wells In Nipton

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The walk hadn’t been too bad, other than the troubling plume of smoke on the horizon, the same direction he was going. If he kept telling himself everytime the panic set in that it probably had nothing to do with his plans, he could keep walking.
> 
> Just keep walking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter three! I actually realized I had forgotten some of the play through in New Vegas so made a new game with Cee. So far been super sassy and hit things with a machete up to Nipton :)

The door to the Nipton General Store and Supply slammed shut, the dust it agitated danced in the beams of the afternoon light streaming through the windows. Taking the chair the man had abandoned, Cee sat and took a shaky breath in.

After Primm was no longer visible behind his shoulder, he had stopped his mad dash from responsibility and slowed to a walk. Sorry not sorry, he had too much to handle now without adding the public safety duties of a town as well. 

The walk hadn’t been too bad, other than the troubling plume of smoke on the horizon, the same direction he was going. If he kept telling himself everytime the panic set in that it probably had nothing to do with his plans, he could keep walking.

Just keep walking.

He would have continued on with the cycle of panic, then trying to convince himself everything was ok, if his thoughts were not interrupted by gunfire to his right. Cee had reflexively dropped to the ground and scrambled for the rifle strapped to his back. 

“You crazy bitch!” each word from the unseen man was punctuated with gunfire. In response to the hurled insults , was a woman's angry shrieking and her own screams punctuated with gunfire. In the grass, Cee had slowly brought the sights up and looked through the shallow grass of his inadequate hiding spot.

Unseen in the grass Cee had watched a man in leather armor defend his position behind a mostly destroyed billboard against a scantily clad woman who was just shrieking, running in a full charge with her gun firing. Cee had no clue what the hell was going on. Every shot into the woman she seemed to just ignore until she was only a few feet from the man, a shot directly into her chest had dropped her. 

And watched as he kicked the body.

And watched as he walked away.

And watched the empty field for a long time.

Looking back now, that should have been his sign to just go the long way around Nipton. If not that then being almost ran over by a Powder Ganger should've been. 

Seriously what the hell, fucking Powder Gangers every fucking where he went. 

Surprisingly the man seemed to care less that Cee might be sorta vaguely notorious for killing several….a lot of his fellow former incarcerated. No he was yelling, pumping his fist. He had even grabbed Cee’s shoulders and tried to hug him. Out of a reflex he didn't know he had, Cee had kneed him right in the crotch.

Even down on the ground groaning, the man had a giant grin on his face and was wheezing “I won! I won! I won the fucking lottery!” Cee dropped down to a squat next to the man and cocked his head, “Dude, what the fuck?”

The man coughed “I did it, I won!”

Giving up Cee left the man to his celebrations, in the dirt, and decided maybed the general store would be a good option to get some fucking answers. 

It was, and a giant guilt trip too. It wasn’t like he was targeting Powder Gangers! They kept shooting at him….or at least at people who had helped him out. He wasn’t the fucking Grim Reaper for fucks sake!

The man (another man not the lottery winner) whose chair Cee was now sitting, had cursed him out and then asked for Med-x. After a few doses (cause guilt is a bitch) he’d began a rambling soliloquy.

Apparently the mayor of fair Nipton was a scheming little shit bag who had made a deal with the Powder Gangers, giving them a town to run raids on passing caravans. After being told there was a big score coming up, the Gangers had arrived with a large crew. Unfortunately for them all that lay in wait was an even larger crew of legionnaires. 

After being rounded up, the head of them (per the drugged rambling was wearing a fox on his head, sure buddy sure) then had the whole town rounded up to. Dead Fox Man had lectured them all about being weak and corrupt. When the talking had stopped, the Legion had passed out slips of papers with numbers on it. 

The winner went free (ah the guy outside, the lucky winner), chair guy had won second place and been crippled. Then a group placed third, they were quickly executed, a mercy per Dead Fox Man. 

Fourth place and fifth, well the smoke plumed marked the fourth place winners. The fifth, chairman told Cee when he walked up to Town Hall he’d see fifth place. 

Even the Med-x couldn’t hide the horror in his voice. 

Cee gave him a Super Stimpack, “Dude just get out of here”  
Now Cee had a decision to make, he could hide here forever. Die nameless in some run down store, or go outside see the sight that made a Powder Ganger terrified to continue on his quest.

Cee really wished he had stayed in the store.

The little street leading up to the town hall was lined with poles, and on each was a body crucified. Cee walked up to the first one, full of pity and morbid curiosity. Looking up, he heard a soft groan. In horror he stumbled back and fell, they were still alive.

“Ah, do not feel so sorry for them.” a cultured voice came from his right. Cee scrambled in the dirt to his feet. Maybe twenty feet from him was now a group of 10 men, dressed in red leather pleated skirts and armor. Several snarling dogs paced among them and in front was a man in sunglasses and a fox headpiece. The Dead Fox Man.

Cee glanced behind then back, there was no way he could fight them all. He might be able to outrun them, if they didn't actually want him dead. Shit, survived a bullet to the head to now get killed by fucking curiousity. 

“Now, now do not worry. If I wished for your death, your blood would be on the sands befouling it as we now speak.” Cee narrowed his eyes, “well….guess ill be going then.” he turned to leave and was stopped by a gunshot at his moving feet. “Ah, you must have misunderstood, my business with you is not finished as of yet”

Dead Fox Man strolled up to him, “I am Vulpes Inculta and I shall give to you a mission.” The man (Cee bitterly called him Dead Fox Man in his head) walked slowly around him, “such an honor I bestow on you, to spread the message of the Legion greatness and their victory here in Nipton against the soft and corrupt.”

Cee scoffed, “there is no way in hell” well he was supposed to be dead already might as well go out sassing a man wearing a dead fox as a fashion piece. 

Dead Fox Guy (yeah that has a ring it to) finished his circle and stood back in front of him. He smiled gently, and a shiver went down his spine. “No matter, if you do it willingly in the service of Caesar or can not keep silent the things you know. You being alive is enough for the word to spread” He stepped back and gestured to his troops, “as they say, have a pleasant day.”

The troops filed away, leaving Cee standing alone.


	4. Delirious in Dinky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ha! Got this chapter finished! Thanks in part to my partner in crime, life and love Housecat!

Chapter 4: Delirious at Dinky

Cee stood in the shade, craning his neck even further back. He squinted and cocked his head to the side. Yep it was a giant fucking lizard towering overhim. 

This is how his journey would end, the lizard would lean down and CHOMP CHOMP! Tiny bits of Cee would be spread all over the shady patch of desert. Or maybe he was having some bullet to brain, listening to dead fox wearing evil guys trauma induced hallucinations. 

Maybe both, he could use a nap, even if it was by lizard noms. 

Then the lizard chuckled. 

Cee’s head jerked and he lost his balance, falling onto the rocky ground. Oh higher authorities, this was it. Death and or naps by noms. As the rock dug into his back, he saw the lizard continue to be motionless. Then a face popped out behind the somewhat dingy rows of teeth. 

Oh no the lizard already ate someone.

The man did not seem to be bothered by being a snack, actually he looked kind of guilty.

“Hey sorry, are you okay?”

Cee blinked, then blinked again. When the man frowned he realized he had not actually answered the questions.

“Uhm, hey?” he raised an arm to awkwardly wave and gestured vaguely to his mostly okay state of being laid flat out on the ground. The man continued frowning, damns he wasn’t convinced! “Sorry, was pretty sure I was seeing….hallucinating...well” the awkward arm now gestured towards the silent monolith of a green lizard.

Silence and frowning. Cee was feeling a bit judged.

Grumpily he flailed, trying to gesture at his current situation, past drama, etc. , “it's been a long….everything.”

The man’s frown softened to a more sympathetic downward turn, whoo no more judgement! “Damn man, know how that is.” He pointed a thumb behind him, “well the hotel is behind ole’ Dinky here, it's pretty nice if you have the caps.” he smiled, “get a room, sleep off the … everything”

Cee rolled to his feet and shot off a tired salute, “thank you” The man returned the salute, with more style and energy then Cee definitely had. “It’s Manny, off you go.” Cee smiled shyly and nodded, very self conscious on his walk around Dinky the Lizard knowing that Manny was probably watching him. 

The sleep had helped.

The headache that had been slowly trying to dig it’s way from his eyeballs to the back of his skull was mostly gone. Hell he could almost pretend he had ever heard of Nipton. Except for that moment where he thought he could almost pretend to forget. 

The lady at the front desk had been nice, sorta. She had that kind of nice that put him on guard. Nothing particular she said or did, just she seemed so eager. Too eager. Creepy eager. But again paranoia had been a constant friend since waking up so maybe it was nothing. Now his major concern was the angry growling his stomach was making. 

He rolled off the bed gracefully to face plant on the floor when his foot got caught in the sheets. 

With some new bruises, Cee sat on the cracked concrete walkway outside his door. Sitting close to the rusted railing, he leaned his face against the cool bars as he munched on his scavenged breakfast and looked across the desert. 

The mid morning heat was making everything hazy and dreamlike, he let his thoughts wander.

Maybe I can just stay here, forget answers and stolen goods, I’ll become a giant lizard wrangler.

I wonder what her issues were, she was soooo happy I was here. Weird.

Manny was cute, luckily I already made an idiot of myself so that is so not going to happen.

How much Nuka Cola can you drink before all you do is piss it?

His academic thoughts on Nuka Cola were interrupted by the sound of a door closing directly underneath him. Still chewing he pushed his face a bit more into the space between the bars. From under the eaves formed by the walkway he could see the top of a red beret bobbing as the person made their way to the Dinky Lizard. 

Cee was content to lazily watch them, until he hiccuped.

The man whirled around, and in a smooth motion pulled the rifle that had been hitched over his shoulder and crouched. 

Oh this is familiar, a gun pointed at me, Cee was getting worried that his inner voice was getting a bit fatalistic. 

The two stared at each other, Cee afraid to move since he was sure he couldn’t survive being shot twice in his lifetime. Then Manny huffed, he straightened up, dropping the barrel of his gun. “Guess you got me back for yesterday” 

Cee wanted to bang his head on the bars, “Sorry?”

Manny swung the rifle back on his shoulder and laughed, “its not problem, kinda funny”

“Well, still sorry”

Manny shrugged, then had to hitch his rifle strap up higher when it was dislodged. “Naw, you just owe me a cola and your story then” he winked, “come bother me in a couple hours” He gave a sassy salute and whirled around. When he reached the stairs he waved as he pushed the door in, Cee waved back then blushed like the idiot he was. 

After he disappeared into Dinky (kinky, he snoreted then groaned at his own stupid joke) Cee let his head thunk against the bars. Yet another thing to add to his list of traits….he was awkward as hell with people who weren’t trying to kill him. Ugh. While he was pouting he heard the door Manny had walked into open again, he looked up.

The man walking down the rickety stairs was so not Manny. Manny was a lean guy with tanned skin and dark hair. This man was a bit shorter, bulkier, and surprisingly pale for a guy living in the Mojave. He was either bald or had a really close cut hair style under the similar red beret. 

When the man paused and sharply looked at him Cee realized he had been staring. He gulped and again waved awkwardly, just maybe he could find another way to wave just to save himself some embarrassment. 

The man glared at him, then seemed to dismiss him. He continued his march to the metal stairs to the second floor of the motel. Cee panicked, oh shit this guy was pissed. All his weapons were in the room and he had managed to anger a dude that could just drag him up to the top of Dinky Lizard and throw him off. 

Manny seemed to like him, maybe he’d intervene. And what was with his death lately and the fucking giant ass lizard being involved!

As he continued foreseeing his own demise by a random angry man and giant fake lizard. The Angry Man had reached the second floor, he walked to the door next to where Cee was currently having a minor heart attack. At least it was his heart this time and not his head, how….romantic? The Angry Man stopped at the door next to his, pulled out a key, and without another glance at him went inside. The door made a sharp crack as it closed.

See a victory, not everyone wanted to kill him just because. Yea…..

Hours later, Manny almost choked on a mouthful of Nuka Cola as Cee opened up with “well so it all started with me getting shot in the head and has kinda not improved since then” Cee fretted as Manny recovered (surprising his addled brain reminded him if they are coughing they are breathing so dont hit them on the back, good job brain!).

“Damn that fucking sucks” Manny hoarsly croaked, “so you’re following this dandy in a checkered coat and the Khans he’s rolling with” Cee nodded wearily, “yeah, everytime I get close they’ve moved on. It’s like the slowest saddest game of tag” 

Lost in his own miserable thoughts, it took Cee some time to realize how quiet the lizard head had become. Looking over he saw Manny frowning and looking down at his feet. 

Damnit Cee, youve brought the whole fucking lizard down with your tragetic back story. No one cares! He groaned and stammered, “im...im sorry Manny you don’t want to hear that, shit sorry.” he clammored to his feet knocking over his mostly empty glass bottle, “fuck, im sorry ill just….uhm go”

Great, nice guy just want to talk and you make it alllll about your sad life, for fuck sake, Cee’s intenal monlogue went on.

“No wait” Cee looked up and Manny was still frowning, “sorry, no it's just well” he looked a bit sheepish, “I may know something about the guys you're looking for”

“Uhm, what?”

Manny grimaced, “yea, so before all this” he waved a hand down his uniform, at Cee’s blank look he continued, “uhm joining the NCR, I was a Khan.” 

Oh. Oh! Oh!?

Manny shrugged awkwardly, “I still am in touch with some of my family you know.” he seemed to kinda hunch in, “and two of them may have stopped by a week or so ago. Told me a crazy story about think checkered suit ass stiffing them after he got them to do some dirty work on a courier”

Well, for once the awkward wasn’t something Cee had done. Sure got shot in the head, but he didn’t do that himself. 

“What are you planning to do to them” Manny’s voice was quiet, “I mean I get it they helped fuck you over. But they told me it was the fancy asshole who shot you.”

Cee shrugged, “It’s not like I plan on riding them down and getting some kinda of death vengeance” Now he was annoyed, for fuck sake why was this so complicated. Nice random guy in a giant lizard also turns out to be sorta friends with some of his attackers. Fuck fuck fuck. “I just want answers. Why? Why me? Why my package? Why fucking shoot me and leave me for dead!” his voice got louder until he was yelling. And crying, great.

He sniffled, rubbing his eyes roughly. Shit. Damnit. Fuck.

“Hey hey, please don’t cry” Manny sounded strained, Cee had no idea if he looked since he had buried his burning face in his hands. 

Another thing learned, he hated crying. 

A tentative hand weighed down on his shoulder, “Sorry, I had no idea what you've been through and I just focused on worrying about my guys.” Cee sniffled wetly, “I don’t know why it happened, they didn’t really want to talk about it. And I’m not saying forgive them, smiles and sunshine and shit. Just…” he trailed off, Cee looked up.

Manny looked just as strained as he sounded. Cee didn’t know what it was like to have friends. Sure the people in Goodsprings liked him, but no one knew him. They couldn’t. His mind was empty of memories and thoughts before being dragged out of his shallow grave. He had no idea what it was like to have friends you want to back even when they did terrible things. 

“Just, don’t judge them too harshly. You deserve your answers, and your revenge.” he laughed nervously,” shit i dont think they would even argue it. Just, give them a chance is all im’ saying er, asking”

Cee just nodded and smiled wetly.

Fuck this stupid lizard.


	5. Regret on the Roof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He regretted every thing, especially the idea that positivity would some how erase his fucking terrible luck. He seemed doomed to keep meeting the barrels of guns way too close to his head. 
> 
> On the stroll over to Dinky the Lizard, Cee had forgotten two very important things. One, he made terrible life decisions and two, the time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow, kudos and comments make my giggle to myself and blush!
> 
> I’ve tried to keep Cee’s description vague, but I had to put a height description for comparison. Also I can see him having a bit of sensitivity to being just about average height. I’m 5’9” 3/4 thank you very much and have a bit of short man syndrome :3

The conversation between the two died after that. After a few minutes of awkward silence and stilted attempts at conversation, Cee stood up. “I should…”he waved his hands in the air, “maybe look for some work….or something”. Manny’s face looked relieved at the change of topic, “Actually I can help you out there.”

He pointed out Dinky’s mouth, “That house over there? It belongs to McBride. He and his wife run Brahmin. Good folks.” Manny dropped his arm and frowned,” but in the last two weeks their herd has been steadily massacred.” he shook his head, “no one sees anything, but they swear they hear a voice followed by gunfire. When they take a look, nothing is out there but their dead Brahmin.”

“No leads? No one has seen anything?” Cee asked.

Manny shook his head, “Nada, always happens at night, different times. Hell even the night-time guy keeps an eye out over there. All he sees is gunfire, brahim fall over, and nothing.”

“Night guy?” Cee asked aloud.

The awkward tension came back to fill poor Dinky’s brain pan. Manny nervously rubbed the back of his neck, “yeah...uh the night-time sniper. Boone. Maybe you’ve seen him? White dude, red beret, glasses, always looks pissed?”

Ohhhhhhh the Angry Man. Cee grimaced, “uhm yeah I saw him in passing. His room is next to mine” Manny just nodded.

And back to uncomfortable silence.

……

“Sooo, I’ll go talk to the McBrides!” Cee winced as his voice came about a bit too loud and forced. Manny started, then gave him a strained smile, “yea, let me know if you find out anything”

About an hour later Cee was standing in a pen made of bleached reclaimed wood. Several pieces looked recently patched, probably from the mysterious midnight murderer. Heh Cee laughed, alliteration. Beside him was McBride, the man looked like what Cee thought a rancher should look like. Apparently the bullet hadn’t destroyed his stereotype database much. 

“It’s the damnedest thing! At least twice every week for the last two, we get woken up by gunfire and voices. We’ve lost 12 of our guys so far!” McBride sounded equal parts pissed and sad. The few Brahim in the pen blinked their two sets of eyes slowly at his outburst, then went back to grazing.

“I’ve moved most of them to another patch, but there is only so much grazing lands around here”

Though Mr. McBride, the rancher stereotype, was a very nice man. Cee had heard this particular sad tale twice already. Right now he just sorta felt bad for the man, and his poor bahimn, so he continued nodding in all the right places while looking over the area. 

Everytime it was the same. Sometime late at night, the McBrides would be woken up to a barrage of high speed gunfire. The brahmin would cry out and they would hear either creepy laughing or low guttural talking. By the time they made it outside, armed and clothed. The mysterious midnight massacrer, heh, would be gone.

So how was Cee going to catch a crazy brahmin killing sneak.

Badly that how, really really badly.

In a brillant moment of unrealized tactical genius, Cee decided that he would wait on the roof all night for the mysterious midnight murderer (this was going to be stuck in his head for weeks). Surely that is where all the previous attempts went wrong, they waited until the assailant struck. Cee would preempt the triple M and stealthily lay in wait for their rampage to start. Catching it in the act.

The first few hours he had been filled with jittery anticipation, but as the moon climbed up higher so did his boredom. He couldn’t check his pip boy to see how much time had passed. So he was stuck. His only company was some wind, stars and the gentle lowling of the brahmin below him.

He felt he could be forgiven for not seeing the wrongness of what happened next. Between boredom, exhaustion, and you now a bullet to the brain, he had figured he was just tired or hallucinating again with a patch of empty air seemed to waver and shimmy. Cee had blinked rapidly to clear his eyes, and the patch was gone. He had sighed, then tensed as the same movement came from his peripheral.

He watched in mounting horror as the air rippled and moved as if it was walking. Its path slowly meandered towards the pen. Cee was frozen as the air patch stopped about 10 feet, he hoped it would just disappear like most of his hallucinations. It could happen right?

Instead it flickered, and now instead of weird waverly nothingness was standing a massive creature. If Cee had been on the ground it would have towered over his not so bad 5 feet and 10 inches (thank you very much, he was so not short!). Stained cotton and leather clothing was stretched over swollen purple and blue muscles. It’s face had a twisted visage of a grin, smirk and scowl all at the same time. The teeth showing were disturbingling yellowed and sharp. 

Even more concerning was the mini gun it was pulling from its back. 

Cee was not proud to admit he had panicked. Giant monsters appearing out of nowhere and fear for the poor defenseless brahim made his brain go staticky. So he fell back on instinct. In this scenario of “Oh my gods I may either pass out because my brain can’t remember to breathe or panick flail my enemies to death”, he did what came naturally. 

He screamed.

Luckily that had startled the nightmare creature who bobbled it’s minigun and it hit the ground with a thunk. The nightmare creature and the brahim joined in with his screaming, for their own reasons. The nightmare creature because there was a strange creature shrieking at it from nowhere. The brahim because there were now two strange creatures shrieking in their near vicinity.

Cee kept a screaming litany of “whatthefuckwhatthefuckwhatthehellwhatthefuck” as he reached frantically over to wear he had stashed his bag. The creature had recovered from the fright Cee had given it and it’s screaming was now full of rage. As it went to pick up it’s dropped weaponry, Cee had rummaged in his found bag for a solution to his current problem. 

Dynamite.

Cee’s screaming became breatheless chanting of the word fuck over and over again as he couldn’t both scream and light sticks of dynamite at the same time. 

An unnumbered amount of sticks later, his hands were shaking and the chanting was silent. His anxiety was more a white noise of static, slightly annoying but peaceful background noise. It was easy to manage and feel secure now that the nightmare creature was a pile of blistered, smoldering purple blue flesh on the desert floor. Dynamite, hard to feel anxious when the cause of your anxiety has been blasted into oblivion. Mostly. 

The screaming had woken the McBrides, and most the town. They had arrived at the pen with weapons brandished. Realizing all the action was over, they mostly just stood around the smoking goop pile pointing or poking at it with their useless weapons. Some even were pointing at the disturbing new gargoyle-like creature on the McBrides roof that was silently shaking and brandishing an unlit stick of dynamite like a religious artifact against evil

Even in his anxiety driven state, Cee had managed to aim the throws a safe distance from the brahmin, they however were not thankful and continued their angry screaming at the far end of the pen. They were ignored by the gathered folk, screaming brahmin was an everyday thing.

It had taken the McBrides thirty minutes to convince Cee to get off the roof. Between his shaking and the fear that more nightmare creatures would just appear as soon as he touched the ground, his anxiety was pinging DANGER!DANGER!. Gentle cajoling and the promise that if anything popped out of nowhere it would get the business end of Mrs. McBride’s shotgun finally convinced him to come off his safe perch.

As soon as he reached the dusty ground, Mrs. McBride had bundled him off to the house where she gave him tea and her freshly baked desert pear pie. She tutted over “the poor dear” until his shaking stopped and he could complete a full sentence. Mostly they were “oh my gods this is amazing” and “OH MY GODS WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!”

The sun was just starting to rise, turning the sky into a beautiful palette of pinks, blues and purples when Rancher McBride had handed Cee a bag of caps. With a gentle punch in the shoulder and a gruff, “ya did good kid”, he had seen Cee out of the house. Cee had grinned sleepily at the older couple while waving goodbye and walking back towards the hotel. 

Instead of heading back to his room for some well earned rest, his sleepy brain could only focus on sharing the good news with Manny. Maybe this good deed could clear up some of the awkward tension between the two. Positive vibes...energy...whatever, released into the universe. Clear up some of his bullet to brain karma, he smiled at that.

He regretted every thing, especially the idea that positivity would some how erase his fucking terrible luck. He seemed doomed to keep meeting the barrels of guns way too close to his head. 

On the stroll over to Dinky the Lizard, Cee had forgotten two very important things. One, he made terrible life decisions and two, the time. 

He had opened the door with sleeping flourish and announced, “hey guess who took….” the words died as he went crossed eyed at the gun barrel now pointed at his face. Hence back to the regretting everything. The face at the other end was so not Manny.

Cee at this point was both too exhausted and too scared to actually be scared. All he could think was , oh fuck not again! and why is this guy wearing sunglasses at night? The Angry Man from the room next to him aka the Night Time Guy aka Boone was glaring at him over the barrel of his very terrifying rifle. 

One heartbeat.

Two heartbeats.

Three….

“Uh...good morning?” if Cee wasn’t too busy keeping his hands up at chest level he’d slap himself for both being stupid and akward. Great, my final words,...uh good morning.   
Angry man’s head actually leaned back, as if he was trying to avoid catching Cee’s special brand of stupidly awkward. The barrel moved to the side of Cee’s face, so yeah maybe Cee would not be adding to his collection of brain bullets. 

The man somehow glared even more through the smokey glasses covering his face. 

“Don’t sneak up on me like that !” he growled.

Cee kept his hands up, “Sorry! I didn’t know you were here….uhm was not expecting you know, you...not that I know you!” oh please shut up shut up shut up he pleaded internally, “just, uhm found out who was killing the brahmin and wanted to...say yeah their safe and uhm yea.”

The man just continued to stare in a very long, judging silence. 

Crap, Cee panicked even more, what can I say to save myself.

He wailed, “I’m not from here!”

Oh gods, I’m going to die in this lizard just like I thought I would.

Instead of a shot, he got a snort, full of disbelief and musing. The barrel went to pointing at the ground and not his delicate noggin, “no...your not are you.”

Cee lowered his hands, “uh no?”


	6. Nosey in Novac

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The overhead fan was lazily moving the dustmotes that hung suspended in the air. Though the atmosphere of the room was soothing his mind was racing too fast to relax. He turned his head to the side table, laying limply on it’s scarred surface was a red beret. The patch was face up showing a bear skull with two rifles crossed underneath it.
> 
> The last thing you never saw.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a bit later than I wanted. Sorry! It’s the longest chapter I’ve written so I was editing like crazy!

“I want you to find someone for me.”

Cee went over that phrase over and over as he lay in the safety of his rented bed. The overhead fan was lazily moving the dustmotes that hung suspended in the air. Though the atmosphere of the room was soothing his mind was racing too fast to relax. He turned his head to the side table, laying limply on it’s scarred surface was a red beret. The patch was face up showing a bear skull with two rifles crossed underneath it.

The last thing you never saw. 

“Mrs. Boone?” Jeannie May Crawford’s face pinched disapprovingly, “ I don’t believe in gossiping. If you want some torrid tale well you will have to find it someplace else” The woman turned her back on Cee and began to passively aggressively sweep the lobby floor corner.

The older woman had been all smiles when Cee had first walked in. Surely the lady running the hotel would know all the going ons in town. Good place to start a vaguely threatening investigation.

She had fawned somewhat uncomfortably over him, congratulating and thanking him for his work on helping the town stay safe from whatever that horrible creature had been at the McBrides. She had then gone on and on about how the McBrides were such good people. The about how Manny and Boone were such good men to point Cee in the direction of the McBrides.

Cee had tried to use her taking a moment to breathe to segway into his mission.

“Oh yeah they are super great “ one of which is fucking terrifying and the other I’ve had the most uncomfortable interaction with since being pulled from a grave, “ though when I was talking to Boone, who is….really personable when you get him talking.” please let him never hear that I said that about him, “though it's really sad”

Cee tried to school his face in the appropriate hangdog look.

The woman had stiffened and leaned back a bit from the counter, “oh?”her tone going from warm to disinterested. 

“Yeah, he told me his wife had gone missing some time back. I just, you know, feel for the guy. Not to know anything.” Cee shrugged, “I mean you were around then, did you ever hear anything?”

During her protest of gossip, before cutting him off to sweep imaginary dust off the floor, her eyes had cut to the left. With her back turned, Cee leaned slightly over the counter to see what she may have been staring at.

Embedded in the floor was a large black safe.

“You just got into town”

Cee at this point had lowered his arms. He also was not sure if that was a question or a statement. 

“Maybe you can help me.” So statement then.

“Soooo you're not going to kill me?” Cee squeaked, he had to ask. It was not super clear if he was going to or not and Cee really needed to know. Asking for a friend, his friend named anxiety.

The man managed to seem even more annoyed by Cee’s presence, “....No…”

Cee nodded and took a deep breath, held it, then exhaled. “Ok, so how can I help you?”

At this point Cee’s sleep addled and freaked out brain had figured out this man must be Boone, Boone sighed.

“I need someone I can trust”

Cee blinked at that, a bit of pride making him blush.

“You’re a stranger so you’ll have to do”

Well ouch, pride quickly deflated.

“She was like a cactus flower”

With a mouth full of pie, Cee could only make a questioning noise.

The trio consisting of Mrs. “Call me Alice” McBride, her husband you know the Rancher, and Cee were crowded around the McBride’s small kitchen table. Between them was a freshly baked pie that Cee was currently helping them go through.

“What my beautiful bride means is, she was real pretty to look at, but there was no getting close to her.” After blushing pink and admonishing her spouse for his flirtations, they really were adorable and Cee made it a life goal right then and there to find a relationship like this. You know after finding out the whole bullet to head head reason and the mystery behind his delivery. Alice continued, “I’m sure her cold shoulder was her just trying to hide how unhappy she was.” Alice looked a bit sad, “I mean, can you blame her? Gets swept off her feet by a strapping military man in the bright light and glitz of New Vegas, then finds herself here. Alice just shook her head, “no, can’t blame the poor woman for wanting to think there was something better out there than here in Novac.”

“So you trust a stranger you just had a gun pointed at like 5 minutes ago” Cee snarked, he was pouting a bit. Wounded pride and all, he was totally trustworthy. He’s saved lots of people damnit!

Boone frowned, “I said it was a start.” he sighed and looked out the lizard’s mouth, “this town, nobody looks me straight in the eye anymore.”

Okay, Cee was starting to feel sorta bad for the guy. Yeah he was an asshole, but he also seemed like he really needed some kind of help. Damn it.

Cee huffed, “what do you need from me?”

Boone looked back at him, gave him an appraising look, “I want you to find something out for me.”, he shrugged, “I don’t know if there’s anything to find, but I need someone to try”

He looked Cee straight in the eye, “My wife was taken from our home by Legion slavers, I was on watch. They knew when to come and what route to take.” He tightened his lips, “they only took Carla, somebody set it up.” The hand holding the rifle tightened, “I don’t know who”

Cee gave a determined nod, “okay so we track them down to find her.”

Boone gave a curt shake of his head.

“No….my wife is dead. I want the son of a bitch that sold her.”

The two of them were in Manny’s room. Cee had finally found the time to track him down and update him on the nightmare creature versus brahim situation. Manny had offered him a late lunch as a reward along with some caps.

“So you met Boone?” Manny laughed, as Cee regaled him with his story of poor life choices.

“Yeah, you guys friends?”

Manny frowned, “uh...we’re not so friendly right now.” The awkward atmosphere came back quickly. The other man looked so sad and uncomfortable. “I’m sorry, just haven’t had anyone to talk about it with. Just hitting me hard”

Cee scooted his chair closer so their knees were almost touching, “No, no apologies that sounds rough as hell.” he gnawed on his bottom lip, “uhm do you want a hug or a comforting pat on the shoulder?” Cee was just hoping he hadn’t insulted or made the poor guy even more uncomfortable.

Manny’s shoulders shook a bit as he broke out into a choked laughter, “Ain’t gonna lie, a hug would be nice”. Cee scooted closer and opened his arms, the other man just fell a bit forward into the embrace.

For a few moments neither spoke, Cee just rubbed comforting circles into Manny’s shoulder blades. “Thanks,” his voice was muffled a bit by Cee’s shirt, “it’s just...everyone depends on you, but they don’t’ ask you about how you feel or if your day is going bad. What your worried about, you know”

Cee made some slight noise of affirmation as Manny went on.

“Just, Boone was my best friend. I was his spotter when we were in the NCR. We were always together. So when it came time to settle down and find a future, of course I was going to drag him along with me” Manny pulled back from the hug, his handsome face looked miserable., “Then here was this woman who was too good for it all. His wife and I fought all the time.” 

Manny leaned back with his arms crossed, “She thought I was too crass, she was from the high roller society in Vegas, me I grew up with my cousins in the hardest parts of it.” He shrugged, “we never got along….then she went missing and Boone stopped talking to me” 

Cee started, “he...he doesn’t think you had something to do with it.” If he did, why would he ask Cee to look around for who did?

Manny slumped in his chair, “I don’t think he does, but …. When he told me she was gone maybe I wasn’t as sympathetic and broken up as I should’ve been. Shit, ,I figured she had had enough and hooked up with some caravan to go back to the Strip.”

Cee reached over and put his hand on the other’s shoulder, “Look, I’ve known Boone for like 20 minutes. He seems like a guy if he thought you had something to do with it he would’ve done something. He’s probably dealing with all this and some of that has spilled over to y'all's friendship” Manny nodded sadly, “I’m sure you feel terrible you weren’t as supportive as you wanted to be, but it wasn't your intention to be an asshole. And maybe after this whole thing is worked out and he gets some kinda of closure, yall can talk and mend this rift.” 

Manny sniffled a bit and smiled at Cee, “You just seem to really understand all this, you're just a really nice person arent’ you?”

Cee blushed, “well, I mean, maybe?” he got a laugh in response.

Wiping at his eyes, Manny let out a large sigh, “look I had been thinking about your mission. I had justified it to myself that if I asked you to do a favor for me, then I had to tell you where they went to balance out the whole karma thing. But now that seems like a dick move. So I can point you in the direction you need to get your answers.” He grinned at Cee, who was shocked.

“Manny, thank you” he sputtered, “I didn’t say all those things so you would help me!” Manny snorted, “I know, your nice just cause, that something I like about you so I’ve decided we’re friends and I want to help”

Now Cee starts wiping at his eyes, stupid emotions ,”well, since we are friends I’m going to still help you with that favor!”

Cee felt his whole body freeze as Boone growled his request out, “How….how do you know?”

Boone continued to stare through him, “ I know, alright….and that's all you need to know”

The lizard head went back to being silent. Cee kept trying to read Boone’s impassive face. If he was telling the truth, that person needed to pay. Slavery was fucking awful and Cee’s one interaction with the Legion showed them to be monsterous. Well, it wouldn’t be like he would just pick a random person. Surely they had to be evidence of some sort right?

Cee nodded, “okay, if I do find them, what do I do?”

Boone seemed to relax his stance just a bit, maybe in relief of getting some help, “Bring them here, outside, in front of the nest.” At Cee’s confused look he sighed in exasperation, “this is a sniper's nest, for snipers” Cee frowned at the somewhat condescending tone but nodded., “bring them there, and here” 

The sniper reached up and took his red beret off, he tossed it over to Cee who fumbled it before grasping it in one first. “Wear this, it will be our signal that it's the person we’re looking for.”

“Okay, in front of the nest, with your hat, at night with the bad guy. Got it.” Boone just gave a taciturn nod, “Good, if you find them I’ll make it worth your while” Cee turned to leave, but paused as Boone spoke again.

“Just to be safe, we shouldn’t speak again. Can’t have them getting suspicious, may be the Legion coming for me or you next.”

Exiting the lizard head, er sniper nest, Cee shuddered at the thought of waking up in his hotel bed to find the Dead Fox Man grinning over him.

“You’ll never get me to talk!”

Cee just stared at the man standing in his way. He was dressed in filthy, tattered clothing and his hair looked like it had never seen a bath or comb, well ever. His arms were crossed across his chest and he looked down his nose at Cee.

“Uh….I don’t even know who you are?”

The man narrowed his eyes suspiciously, “then how did you get past the guards” he growled, “don't come any closer or I’ll stick you with my sticking knife!”

Cee took a step back and raised his hands, well at least this time he was being threatened with a figurative knife instead of a gun, “no problem, I’ll stay back here” The man looked confused, “what did you say? You're too far away I can’t hear you!”

“You said not to get any closer!” Cee yelled, waving his hands. He so did not have the energy or time for this shit! The man pouted, “well okay I guess you can come closer.” Now Cee growled, “I don't even know if I want too! I was just walking!”

The man nodded sagely, “It’s weird, just walking. That’s good, can't trust a body out there being nice and neighborly, keeping things clean. Walking and talking to yourself like you, it's all out there. You can trust someone like that.” He puffed out his chest a bit, “No Bark, nice to make your acquaintance” 

“No...bark?”

No Bark looked sly as he replied, “That’s what they call me, cause they know I ain’t just barking here. What I says got bite, cause it's the truth!”

….

“Okay, well what's the word then?”

A hissing noise erupted from No Bark, “shhhhhhhhhhhhhh, not so loudly!” he looked around then grabbed Cee’s arms to drag him into the shadows of the motel building. Without letting go, he quickly scanned the area again. “You can’t be too careful, they are always watching, listening. You never know who may be one of them!!!”

Cee gently removed his arm from the man’s grip, “uhm who is?” No-bark shrugged, “mole man usually, looking for women to steal their hair for wigs. Since they are bald or be balding. Saw shadow men in the lobby some time back, up to terrible business….or looking for the toilet. But I figure they work for the mole men since the pretty wife went missing.”

With those words Cee gave No Bark a sharp look, “the pretty wife? Mrs. Boone?” The man shrugged, “sure, her hair was very nice. Will make a good wig.”

Cee bit out a curse under his breath as the screwdriver slipped in the lock causing the bobby pin to snap in two. Again. Taking a breath he slowly glanced over his shoulder to confirm that the dark courtyard of the motel was still empty. Replacing the broken pin and repositioning the screwdriver he went back to slowly working the motel lobby door open.

The magazines he had poured over while waiting for Jeannie May to lock up and leave hadn’t made it seem easy but still doable, but the actual application seemed impossible. Cee was aware of time passing and the danger of some insomniac town folk wandering by and seeing him trying to perform the illegal act.

Cee was sure the defense of “I’m pretty, sorta sure the nice motel lady may have sold a member of the town to the Legion...pretty sure” was not going to work. He bit his lip and nudged the bobby pin a little more to the left and put more pressure on the screwdriver. There! He felt the lock release. He almost fumbled his tools before recovering, he reached up and gently turned the knob.

With the door just cracked just enough to let his body in, Cee shuffle crawled in. He slowly shut the door, but stayed in a crouch just in case someone looked through the window. Hunched over, he awkwardly skirted around the desk.

There lay his target, a large black safe embedded in the floor. And another lock. Cee sighed and got to work.

Several bent pins later, he almost cried in relief when the lock made a muffled click noise. It creaked loudly, Cee winced and froze. Afraid to move it more, he reached in and tried to grab anything loose. 

Bag of caps...tempting but not what he was looking for.

Some keys, nope.

3 packs of what was obviously Psycho...okay not judging.

A folded piece of paper.

At this point, his arm was starting to shake. He flapped the paper to open in one hand and scanned it.

….Well….shit….

“Well now, you’ve dragged me all the way out here. What’s so dang important to wake me up before dawn!” The older woman griped. Cee ignored her and looked around, he could see no one walking around, “Don’t ignore me young man!” she went to grab for his arm but he took a step back and finally faced her. He gave her a tired smile, “sorry for all the mystery, just its a very private financial matter.”

Her eyebrows furrowed even more, “just give me a moment and I’ll explain” he reached behind him and pulled the red beret out of the back pocket of his worn jeans. Placing in gently on his head, he turned towards the towering form of Dinky.

“Young man I don’t understand! What financial…”

When he had time to think about it, Cee would be able to describe the sound similar to a wet piece of clothing slung onto the ground. He, however, never would be able to tell what happened first or in what order. The sound, the feel of the hot spray of blood on his face intermixed with a slight stinging sensation from bone fragments, or the sharper sound like a whip being cracked. 

In his mind all three happened at the same time. A few beats of silence, and then he turned his face back to Jeannie May.

She was no longer standing in front of him, his gaze went lower. Her body was rag dolled on the ground. Near her neck a pool of blood began to spread on the dust and rocks. Cee made himself keep looking to where her head would've been, instead there was just a pulpy mass of red and pink flesh. What was left of her head lay in pieces all around where he stood. With the sun rising, he could see them more clearly every minute he stayed. 

His face itched, he rubbed at it and when he pulled his hand away he saw it was shaking and covered in blood. 

It had taken Cee sometime to calm himself enough to stop shaking. He had quickly cleaned up the worst of the gore splatter on him before heading back in Novac proper. Going around the long way had been frustrating, but he would rather be somewhat annoyed if it meant being cautious. If the town ever located what was left of the motel owner he didn’t want them putting two and two together.

He had knocked on the door instead of just walking in. When Boone answered, he had just nodded and stepped back to allow Cee to enter. Entering wordlessy, the courier had just handed the red beret into the sniper’s waiting hand before slumping against the walls of the lizard’s head. 

Also silent, Boone placed his hat back on his head while watching Cee. They both said nothing for a while, Cee just continued a staring contest with the uneven floor while being observed.

Then Boone asked. “How did you know, are you sure?”

Cee nodded and slowly reached into his bag for the paper he had found in the safe. Without saying anything he held it out. The man took it gingerly and read, then he read it again. The paper began to crinkle under his tightening fist.

The courier knew the contents well, he had read it three times himself. Once in the lobby, once in the safety of his room, and once more as he stood outside Jeannie May Crawford;s home. 

We, the representatives of the Consul Officiorum, have this day bargained and purchased from Jeannie May Crawford of the township of Novac the exclusive rights to ownership and sale of the slave Carla Boone for the sum of one thousand bottle caps, and those of her unborn child for the sum of five hundred bottle caps, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledge.

We warrant the slave and her young to be sound, healthy, and slaves for life. We covenant with the said, Jeannie May Crawford, that we have full power to bargain and sell said slave and her offspring.

Payment of an additional five hundred bottle caps will be due pending successful maturation of the fetus, the claim to which shall be guaranteed by possession of this document. 

M. Scribonius Libo Drusus et al.  
Administrators of M. Licinius Crassus, Consul Officiorum ab Famulatus

Boone took a deep breath, then tore the receipt up. Over and over he turned it over and ripped until only a small pile of tiny scraps was left. His face was expressionless again, “It’s done then”

Cee nodded again, still not saying anything.

“I have the caps…”

“No”

Boone raised an eyebrow, “no?”

Cee shook his head, “she was a bad woman pretending to be a nice one. She deserved to die, but I don’t want to get paid for that”

The sniper mulled over that, then nodded, “I understand, I don’t agree, but I get it” He turned to rummage in a duffel back shoved against the wall, “I still can’t have you walk away from this with nothing” He straightened up and held his hand out.

Without thinking Cee accepted the offering, then he looked at it. In his raised hand was a red beret. Similar to the one he had been just wearing, a bit less worn. Caught off guard he just blurted, “You just keep spare berets around?”

The other man scowled, “I like to be prepared.” Cee felt the burn of embarrassment on his face and sheepishly smiled, “sorry, thank you for this.” he continued to hold it up, as if Boone would have no idea what he was talking about. The man again seemed unimpressed but did awkwardly pat Cee on the shoulder as he rose to his feet, “you did good.”

Cee was now in his room, freshly bathed and regretting again his life choices. On the table next to him was the beret, making sure he didn't forget. Yes she was a bad woman, yes she deserved to be punished. But to have a part in it. He rolled onto his back and looked at the ceiling.

Nope the cracked drywall had no answers for him.

It was then his existential crisis was interrupted by his door being kicked open.

He did not handle it well.

Cee shrieked, jumped, and promptly fell off the bed. 

As he lay on the floor, trying to extricate himself from the sheet death trap he was now rolled into, his intruder rounded the bed to stand over him. In his field of vision worn combat boots creaked as their wearer fidgeted. Cee looked up and just stared at the home invader. 

Hands fisted on hips, the man glowered even more intensely than before. Cee was convinced the man had finally decided to kill him. Dead men tell no incriminating stories on other more alive men.

“What the hell are you thinking!” Boone yelled, “you're going to get yourself killed!”

Cee just opened and closed his mouth. 

“Uh...what?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a fun add here’s some stuff that went into this chapter.
> 
> I talked to a friend who is a gun enthusiast about what it would sound like to be standing next to someone who got sniped. This was at work.  
> I then had to reassure a co-worker that we were not planning some unknown person’s death.


	7. Rock It At Repconn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The man went on for a bit on how Manny was too damn optimistic about Cee’s abilities while the disparaged man pouted and finally freed himself from the cocoon of death.
> 
> “Have you even fought a ghoul before!?”
> 
> Cee scowled and pulled his shirt over his head, “I wouldn’t know”, he missed the other man looking a bit abashed.

Cee quickly found out that the man was not there to assure his silence by bloody murder. After watching the courier struggle for several minutes to free himself, he had signed and sat down. While the monstrosity that was part Cee and part blanket burrito writhed on the floor he explained the reasons behind his impromptu home invasion. 

While passing Manny during their shift trade, the former had mentioned that Cee had helped me out and he wanted to apologize. This had led to a bit of a heart to heart with the former friends. They wouldn’t be wearing matching best friend tattoos any time soon, but at least they were talking. During their chat, Manny mentioned Cee being the self sacrificing idiot he was (Boone words, Manny more gently said the younger man seemed to have a need to help others), had planned on helping the town by doing a run on the Repcon station. The same station where hordes of feral ghouls would spill out and harass the citizens of Novac. 

Boone had then cursed and ran out of the lizard to confront Cee on his stupidity. Leading to his dramatic entrance into the hotel room. 

The man went on for a bit on how Manny was too damn optimistic about Cee’s abilities while the disparaged man pouted and finally freed himself from the cocoon of death.

“Have you even fought a ghoul before!?”

Cee scowled and pulled his shirt over his head, “I wouldn’t know”, he missed the other man looking a bit abashed.

“Well it's not easy, there are easily hundreds of them in there.” Cee struggled to get his head through the hole in his shirt, “okay, I have some dynamite...whoosh bam done” Boone looked at the currently headless man with exacerbation. “It doesn’t work that way, tactically you can get jumped, close combat dynamite doesnt do you any good! You’ll just be a corpse before night fall”

Ah ha! Cee’s head popped through the shirt, his hair sticking up every direction possible. “I’ve survived this far, and thats with “he began counting the points on his fingers, “getting shot, buried in a grave, jumped by powder gangers twice, running into the creepiest Legion guy every, invisible monsters with giant guns….”he looked thoughtful, “I think that it” Cee shrugged, “honestly Boone I’m not sure why your upset.”

The man growled, “I’m not upset, random stupidity annoys me”

“Well, why do my random stupid choices annoy you?”

Cee didn’t wait for an answer, he continued packing his items up. He really couldn’t understand why Boone was pissed...oh sorry “annoyed”. Worse case, he dies an anonymous death by ghoul. Maybe Manny will feel a bit sorry, but it didn't really matter. Maybe it was a military thing.

“It's….just...ugh” looking at Boone, Cee saw him pinching the bridge of his nose.  
“Uhm, are you okay?”

His answer was a glare, “look...you helped me out. That means a lot, didn’t even get paid for it” He sighed, Cee was beginning to feel put out on all the sighing Boone did in his presence, “just….wait until tomorrow. I can get Manny some help to cover the nest and I’ll go out with you”

Wait….he wanted to go with …

“You...want to help me?” Cee pointed at himself, then felt immediately stupid. Why did he do these things!?

“I owe you...and it helps the town, so yeah I’m helping you”

Cee hadn’t fought with anyone else since Goodsprings. When asked for his tactical opinion, he just shrugged. Boone was probably getting a migraine with how many times he was glaring and frowning.

They were standing out in the open on the road leading the Repcon, arguing in hissed whispers. 

“How have you stayed alive this long not knowing how to approach a fight!?”

“Jeez Boone I don’t fucking know…. Oh, maybe because I have amnesia!”

“You can’t use that as an excuse for fucking everything!”

The both stood, at first death glaring at each other. Then they realized what Boone had said. A look of horror crept up on his face. Cee just stared, then started laughing. 

“Oh gods, I am totally going to use it for everything!” Cee grabbed his sides and he laughed even harder. The other man’s lip curled just a bit in the corner before he gruffed out, “you’re an idiot.”

They managed to compromise. Sniping and explosives.

Boone would snipe at the packs of ghouls, the few that were left after their terrifying sprint towards the pair would be dispatched by well aimed dynamite. 

When they made their way up the stairs, Cee was pouting to himself. His stocks of dynamite were pretty much depleted. Somehow he had managed to not run into any Powder Ganger for a few days. As nice as it was not to be chased down by angry jailbirds, it also meant no explosives. Sad. 

Boone stopped suddenly in front of him, Cee just barely managed to avoid running straight into the other man's back by awkwardly doing a hop and dodge. The man just gave him a side look as Cee struggled to stay upright, then pointed in front of him.

On the ground, partially propped up on the stairs was the corpse of a ghoul. This shouldn’t be anything surprising or interesting, except this ghoul was wearing tattered brown robes and had a rifle laying at its side. 

Cee knew there were ghouls, who were people that got the bad end of radiation, and feral ghouls, where the bad end went below skin deep and ate their minds away. The latter didn’t bother with clothing, wearing the rags they had on when they lost their minds, and they sure as hell did not use weapons. 

The ghoul’s skin made it hard to tell how long they had been dead, Cee wondered if he had been able to tell that kind of stuff before being shot as Boone crouched down, “keep an eye out” he ordered. Cee responded to the demand by sticking his tongue out but did scan the area for any potential threats. 

“Hasn’t been dead too long, less than a week maybe” the sniper stood up and brushed his hands off on his pants.

“Did ya’ll know there were people up here?”

Boone shook his head, “no….but ferals tend to ignore ghouls unless they attack first, they could have been here a while”

“Why live here is secret?”

The other man shrugged, “privacy, some folk don’t like ghouls. They can get...violent about it”

On the way to the main doors, they found several more bodies spread around clad in the same brown robes and dispatched a few feral ghoul stragglers.

At one point Cee tripped and fell into a pile of ashes. As he spluttered Boone helpfully pointed out that due to the energy weapons lying around Cee had most likely inhaled what was left of a ghoul. The screeching and flailing that followed brought the last of the lone wandering ghouls, and more disparaging remarks on how the hell Cee survived this long in the desert. 

In response Cee had flipped him off while spitting the last of the ghoul ash out of his mouth.

The reception area had several more of the robe clad bodies in it. Scorch marks from energy fire littered the walls and scant bit of furniture. As they stepped further in, around the corner several ghouls rushed out at the couple. Having switched to his bat after running out of dynamite (oh sweet sweet dynamite), Cee reflexively began swinging. At his back Boone had switched from shooting to bashing the attacks with the butt of his rifle. 

The assault did not last long, it had only been three ferals. Cee let out a rush of air to calm the adrenaline shakes he had now. The other man was looking around, contemplating their next move. The both seemed to be taking a break, Cee wondered if he smoked or if he did, did getting shot in the head cure the addiction?

“Hey you….smooth skins!”

Cee started and almost got brained as Boone circle while drawing his rifle up.

“Over here!”

Cee looked up, “God?”

It was not in fact God or anytype of supernatural deity.

Cee sneaked a peek at Boone who was leaning against the wall and seemed to be regretting every coming along with this guilty conscience mission. He was getting pretty good at reading the minutiae tells of the snipers facial expressions. 

The gravelly voice had been coming from a speaker embedded in the cracking drywall. Some of the ghouls were still alive inside the factory, and they directed the pair to go into the manufacturing area and climb some rickety stairs. Cee had turned to Boone, who after a thought gave a taciturn nod. 

The stairs groaned and creaked under their combined weight, but did not dramatically fall apart. Cee was a little disappointed, but decided to not voice that aloud. He was sure Boone was one dumb comment away from leaving him to his own stupidity. 

Which was tested a moment later, when the door opened revealing the voice behind the speaker, the gravelly voiced man sneered, “Man are you ugly”

“Well you look like a dumbass”

If Boone was a man of dramatic gestures, Cee was sure he would have face palmed….or slapped the courier upside the head. 

The pale, balding man’s mouth dropped open.

“Now, now Chris. Remember these are our guests. And one should not judge another on their appearance” 

As “Chris” glared at Cee, he moved to the side to let the two in. He turned his face and it changed to one of reverant adoration. The voice had been melodic, but almost echoey. 

The owner of the voice glowed.

No in a metaphoric sense, but was a green walking glow stick. Cee was proud that he had NOT voiced that thought out loud. The glow stick man smiled as he continued walking down the stairs. He glowed from his eyeballs, hands, even through the patches of the worn but somehow dapper suit he was clad in.

“Welcome friends, I am Jason Bright. We welcome you with great joy! Your coming was foretold to us, you will shepherd us onward towards the Great Journey '' The glow stick man threw his arms out dramatically as he reached the last stair. 

“The fuck?!” Okay, he did his best, but this was fucking crazy. Even Boone had no response to his partners outburst.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep hoping to make it to 100 hits. 
> 
> *keeps checking status*


	8. Neighbors in Novac

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Demons….of course its fucking demons!” Cee wailed, kicking at the rickety stairway that still refused to fall. Beside him Boone rubbed at his temples, seemingly to be regretting ever feeling a bit of sympathy for the courier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized the formatting was erasing my lines for scene changes :(
> 
> Fixed it here and will be going back to correct it in my other chapters!

“Demons….of course its fucking demons!” Cee wailed, kicking at the rickety stairway that still refused to fall. Beside him Boone rubbed at his temples, seemingly to be regretting ever feeling a bit of sympathy for the courier. 

A few hours earlier, after recovering from Cee faux paus of screeching at a glowing messiah figure. The ghoul calling himself Jason Bright had welcomed them into the cult’s headquarters. Moving around the computers and lab stations were more ghouls clad in brown robes, they gave their leader beautific smiles then barely nodded at the new pair before diligently going back to their work.

“My apologies for the subpar hospitality” the ghouls melodic, echoey voice sounded earnestly sorrowful, “Chris is brillant, but been poorly treated by the humans in the outside world, the rest of the flock have been besieged by forces that have kept us from our mission. This sadly tolls heavily on their souls and minds.”

He gestured for the pair to take a seat before he leaned against a desk, “I hope your appearances here, as foretold, will lift their spirit once again.” He smiled, and wow even his teeth and tongue glowed. Cee was a bit memorized until a sharp elbow into his ribs brought him back to reality.

Glaring at Boone he responded, “right, uhm I have no idea about visions, foretold or otherwise” the glowing man just kept smiling, “we’re here cause ghouls, er the bad kind” he stammered, “not that ghouls are either bad or good...I mean the growly kind...i mean!!!” he looked beseechingly at Boone to save him from himself.

Boone sighed, “ Ferals have been coming from here to Novac, almost killing a few folk.”

Jason’s smiled dimmed a bit, both metaphorically and literally,”and you killed them instead”

The sniper shrugged, “Didn’t have much of a choice”

“Those ferals, as you call them, were once members of my flock” Jason frowned, “when their minds went we kept them safe, here away from the madness of the world.” He held both his hands up imploringly, “they were no danger to anyone, well until they came”

Cee knew he shouldn’t ask, the man was just being dramatic….”whose they?”, damnit.

The glowing man sneered, “demons”

Silence.

More silence.

Cee turned to Boone, “Uhm are demons a thing?” The man in question raised an eyebrow, in retaliation Cee maincially gestured in the area of his head. 

“I can assure you they are very real, though hard to see” Jason looked mournful, “they harass us via the speakers, yelling and cursing at us. They appear out of thin air and slaughter my people” Fat tears fell in glowing rivers down his ravaged face, “please will you not help us?”

“Godamnit” the gullible courier whispered.

*************************************************************************************************************

“That's not a demon” Cee looked at him while poking the dead body with his boot, “well it looks like one….” he then looked stricken, “oh gods I killed a demon, well not just this one, back in Novac at the ranch” In his past pre-bullet to brain life was he some type of avenging angel?! Saving glowing ghouls and killing demons?!

“Again, that's...not...a...demon” the other man's words were punctuated by gritted teeth.

“Oh...well what are they?”

He kneeled down to peer closer at the corpse on the floor. The creature was huge both in height and width, it had barely fit in the hallway after appearing in front of them. It was just like the nightmare creature Cee had fought, minus the giant gun. This one had been swinging a large board glistening with several embedded nails.

Boone’s face went from irritated to stoically thoughtful, “looks like a weird colored super mutant, never seen them any color other green or yellow” he kneeled next to the courier, “and haven’t ever heard of them going invisible.” He rummaged around the creature's few belongings and pulled out a leather encased box. With the lid unhinged, Cee could see it held some kind of metallic workings within it. 

“A fucking stealth boy” 

Cee just stared at it, “Uhm, explain to the amnesiac here?”

Boone just shook his head, he pulled the box closer to him and pressed the red button on top. There was a weird low hum and the smell of ozone, then Boone disappeared. Cee fell back and hit the wall, he looked around frantically. “Boone?”

The man then reappeared exactly where he disappeared, looking smug. Cee growled, “fucking asshole you could’ve just told me it makes you invisible!”

The man shrugged. Then behind them they heard a sound of electricity crackling, “HUMANS DIE!”  
*************************************************************************************************************

The door opened to several nightmare creature’s corpses littering the floor. Cee paused and looked over his shoulder to his companion.

“Were we in the room already?”

Boone scowled, he stepped past the courier to look around when a gunshot cracked through the air. They both froze.

“That’s close enough smoothskin.”

Looking up they found a ghoul perched on the walkway, he held a long black rifle, which currently pointed at the two. Cee automatically threw his arms up as Boone glared, “you get yourself trapped in here?”

The ghoul glared back , “ First off, I’m not trapped. This was a tactical choice, all right!” he spat off to the side, “second, who the fuck are you two?”

Realizing they hadn’t been shot at again, Cee lowered his arms, “uhm, a glow stick cult leader asked us to vanquish demons?” He didn’t even have to look at Boone to know he was either a.) frowning at him b) scowling at him or c.) in the magical Boone way doing both at the same time at him.

The ghoul laughed, a grating, crackling sound that actually hurt Cee’s throat to hear. “Bright, sounds like him. Did he ask you pretty please and say how important it was.” he sneered, “never does his own dirty work.”

“You part of the whole” Cee waved his hands around, “Bright Brotherhood of Brightness?”

The ghoul wavered his hand in a “sorta” motion, “ Technically yes, but I get paid to be. The Bright guy needed people who could actually shoot a gun instead of just fawn at him all day. Money’s good, but I did it mostly for the ladies. I don’t have to tell you that Bright’s group has got some fine-looking ghoulettes in it!” He waggled his non existent brows down at the pair, who just stared back. Cee had no idea how to respond to that and Boone refused to respond at all. “Eh….or maybe I would have to tell you” 

“Right, but how did you end up here? Bright told us all the followers here were killed by the demon things”

“Introductions first if we are going to get all the back story cozy with each other, I’m Harland…” he trailed off looking at the two expectantly.

“Oh, I’m Cee and this is…”

“.....Boone…..”

Harland nodded, “right, okay so there we were minding our own damn business when the demons, which are not fucking demons” Boone smirked at Cee, who flipped him off in return, “they call themselves nightkin. I only know that cause they screamed it at me a bunch ot times, while getting shot at.” He mimed hand guns, “anyways, so they pop out of thin air and start slaughtering the group. Me and this cute little thing get smart and run. We got seperated and I got stuck here cause of tactical advantage and all. Good for staying alive, not so good for being able to leave.”

He shrugged, “I may looked like a corpse but I’m partial to living”, his shoulders slumped, “you haven't happen to see a ghoulette wandering around”

Cee shook his head, “no, I’m...I’m sorry”

He gave a laugh that sounded defeated, “yeah, I figured, just...I’ll really miss that adorable yellow smile of hers.”

*************************************************************************************************************

It’s name was Davidson. 

It was larger than it’s companions and was wearing a festive red scarf. 

It really wasn’t happy they had killed several of said companions, but seemed to be willing to talk with them instead of murdering them out right.

It sneered as it spoke, talking about an “Antler” and how “Antler” wanted them to find a shipment of stealth boys.

It went on and on about how “Antler” knew they were here, and how some stupid ghoul was keeping them from finding them.

When asked who the hell was Antler, the creature just mumbled, “Who is Antler? WHO IS ANTLER? Antler, the human asks about you! What do I tell it? All right. All right... Yes, yes, of course. Who Antler is, not important to you. Antler wants that you deal with me!”

Cee was bored, true he had been terrified when they first entered the room and Davidson uncloaked himself. But now the third person whining was getting old. His legs hurt from running around and he was pretty sure he had a sprained ankle. He leaned a hand against the table to check his foot, the table wobbled and several objects fell off. Blindly he reached out and grabbed the largest.

A bleached brahmin skull. As he looked at the empty eye sockets, he wondered how the hell the skull ended up here.

Then the screaming began. “YOU TOUCHED ANTLER! NOW YOU DIE!”

*************************************************************************************************************

“So the, uhm, demons are all gone” 

Jason Bright looked up from the desk, “you made it back?” he blinked, then fat glowing tears welled up in his eyes, “you cleared the way?” Behind him Harland was leaning against the walls, he rolled his eyes while smirking at the pair. 

“Yep, all the …. Demons are gone, you should be good to get to ….the launching pad.” Cee was distracted by Harland making a funny face behind Jason’s back. Boone glowered and elbowed his partner in the ribs. 

The cult leader did not seem to notice, he smiled and his face’s glow actually intensified. “This is glorious!” He stood so quickly the chair shot out and fell, “we must begin at once” He rounded the desk and grabbed Cee’s hands, “oh thank you shepard. You will accompany us! Yes! There is so much work for you to do” He then ran off, yelling and praising, and soon they heard the echoes of his followers continuing the yelling and praising. 

Harland sighed and pushed off the wall, walking past the courier he patted his shoulder. “Come on kid, you did me a solid, I’ll make sure you get paid

*************************************************************************************************************

Talking to Chris the courier realized two things about the man. The first was he worshipped Jason Bright, his surly attitude had changed to one of soft spoken togetherness once Jason had given the pair his “shepard” stamp of approval.. The second was the man was delusional. Not just about Jason and the Bright Bright Hood of Brightness, no the man believed himself to be a ghoul. 

Cee just stared at the man from across the room, “Like how does he not notice”, Boone ignored his partner and was checking over his rifle. “He must pass a mirror? When he bathes does he just shut his eyes?...When he takes a piss…” Boone locked back the rifle’s slide a little too hard and growled, “I don’t care, shut up.”

Seeing his companion wasn’t interested, Cee left him to his gun to talk to Jason.

The shining ghoul wasn’t much help either. He was aware of the man’s mental condition and was doing nothing at the moment to dissuade. HIs eyes got teary and he told the sad tale of them trying to tell the man he was not in fact a ghoul, but stopped after seeing how violently upset it had made him.

Cee was super sure the fact that Chris was well versed in engineering had nothing at all to do with them stopping their campaign of getting him to realize the truth. Nothing at all. Yep. Uh hum.

The courier went back to Chris after Jason asked him for yet another favor. At this point Cee was just accepting the mission to get these people to leave. The plan was for the cult to use the rockets stored at the location to fly off to their promised land in the Great Beyond. Good for them, but they were missing parts. Parts that Chris could point them in the right direction of.

So Cee was back talking to the deluded man, even as he gave him direction Cee still couldn’t help but wonder, how the hell this guy hadn’t figured it out. 

*************************************************************************************************************

They needed two items, a set of thrust control modules and atomic fuel. Chris assured them the items could be found either in Novac or in the surrounding area. After they were shooed away,the pair climbed a utility ladder and now stood blinking in the sun. 

“I have no idea where to start”, Boone shrugged in response, “Lucky for you, I do” he looked smugily at Cee,”good place to start looking is the scrap yard. Old Lady Gibson used to salvage around here, before it got too dangerous for her.”

Cee clapped, “and she may have picked up the thruster module...thingies”

“Thruster control modules.”

“That’s what I said”

Boone just ignored him and started walking back towards Novac, Cee scrambled to follow. They walked in silence for a bit until Cee couldn’t hold it in, “so when we get back to Novac are you….well going to stick around with me?”

The man in question stopped and turned around on his companion, “what?”

The younger man looked down at the dirt, “just well, you wanted to help me cause I helped you. Most of the danger has passed, the rest of this is just running errands.”

Boone just stood in silence for a moment, then continued walking on, “Don’t ask stupid questions lets go.” Again Cee had to scramble to follow. 

*************************************************************************************************************

As the pair approached the salvage yard, two large dogs came barreling around a corner. They rushed towards them snarling and foaming at the mouth. Cee let at a startled yelp and froze. The dogs ignored Boone and went directly to the frozen courier. Circling, they alternated between barking, growling and baring their teeth. Cee whimpered as Boone just watched with his hands placed on his hips. The man frowned at the scene then yelled, “Gibson call off you damn dogs!”

The door to the rusty metal shack swung open and a wavery voice yelled out, “Don’t yell at me mister!”, the older woman stepping out of the building was dressed in a worn, but clean dress, she had a slight stoop and was carrying a shotgun. “Rey! Lupo!” she whistled sharply, “No mas! Aqui!” The dogs stopped immediately and loped off to their master, whining for pets.

She leaned over petting the large dogs while cooing at them. She then sharply looked up at the couple, “What can I help ya’ll with?”

Slightly recovered, Cee cleared his throat, “uhm, hi...yes….we’re looking for a set of thrust control modules?”

Gibson stood up and furrowed her brow, “let me think…” The dogs whined now that they were not getting attention. After a moment she snapped her fingers, “yep think i got a set still left.” Her expression turned sly, “pretty rare now a days...I’m thinking 500 caps is more than fair”

Cee’s face dropped, he did not have 500 caps. He did not have 200 caps. Between doctors and resupplying he had just a bare 135 caps on him. 

Boone scoffed, “Fair?” Gibson shrugged. 

Cee pulled on Boone’s sleeve, leaning up his whispered, “do you have any caps?” He glared, “I’m not paying 500…” 

Cee tugged his sleeve harder, “not what I asked”

The other man sighed, “I have maybe 300 or so”

The courier nodded and turned back to Gibson who had been watching their interplay with a smirk. He smiled, “okay, I understand that you are the only source for this. And I don’t want to dare try and take advantage of a merchant just trying to get by out here” he paused, “but I really needs those modules, even more so your town needs them”

Gibson looked confused, he continued, “I know you're aware of all the ghoul attacks recently” she nodded, “I have a way to end that quickly, but I need the modules. With them I can clear out all the ghouls up at Repconn and get rid of the source of the strange creatures like the one that attacked McBrides Ranch”

Okay a little white lie never hurt anyone right? No one here knew all the Nightkin were dead. Boone looked like he was going to correct Cee, so he gripped the man’s sleeve and twisted it just a bit, putting a pinch on his bicep. He grunted and tried to move away from the courier. Which failed since the latter had a death grip on him.

A smile went over Gibson’s face, “you're the fella that got rid of it didn't you!”

Cee smiled bashfully, he made sure to look very humble, “yes ma’am, just trying to help. Manny let me know about the problems up at Repconn and Boone , well he was awful nice to help me out” 

He looked up at the other man and gave him his best “gosh mister you're my hero look” Boone looked down at him and seemed shocked. A slight flush was on his face, Cee made a mental note to mention to him to be more careful out in the sun.

Boone blinked then seemed to shake himself out of his daze, he frowned again but nodded at Gibson, “yeah he's been helping out”

Cee turned and beamed at Gibson, who smiled back, “well damn, I can’t make a buck off of town heros” she looked conflicted, “but I gotta survive out here too”. The courier nodded, “totally understable, could you maybe work with us on a different amount?”

Gibson sighed, “well, I can survive on letting them go for 250 caps”

“Sold!” Cee yelled, then turned to Boone, “ I need like 115 caps, I got the rest”

Boone groaned and shook the other man’s hand off his sleeve. 

*************************************************************************************************************

Boone refused to return a high five, while Cee pouted he tucked the module away safely in his bag. 

“So any ideas on where to get atomic fuel?” he said moodily. 

Boone was leading them back towards the motel, “Some of the souvenirs Cliff’s got are scavenged from Repconn. He’d chat up customers, saying that the rockets had a bit of radioactive material.” 

“They gave rocket fuel away as a souvenir!?”

The man shrugged, “good for us.”

As they walked up the rickety stairs to the Dinky lizard, Boone stopped. “Hey you handle Cliff, I need to check in upstairs” He didn’t wait for a response, just opened the door and walked in. At least he was nice enough to at least leave the door open for Cee.

Cliff Briscoe was more subdued since the last time Cee had seen him. While they chatted he mentioned that Jeannie May had been missing for a day now and he was worried. If she hadn’t been a slaving, two faced bitch Cee might have felt guilty. But he really just felt a bit sad for Cliff, especially since he would never get any closure. Thanks to coyotes and geckos. 

Cee maneuvered the conversation to the scavenged rockets, and sold him the same story he told Gibson. The man cheered up a bit at the thought of no more ghouls and gave them to Cee for a bargain of 25 caps (funds he had wheedeled from Boone, promising him to get a bigger cut of their reward). He even threw in a Dinky plushie. Cee was not going to share that with Boone, it was his and it was ADORABLE!

Boone still hadn’t appeared at the end of the transaction, so Cee killed time just talking. He found out a bit about the gift shop owner’s previous life, how much trouble he has had selling the adorable Dinky plushies, and how he was unsure what he was going to do if Jeannie May didn't come back.

“You love this place, so you take over and carry on the work y'all loved to do '' Cee hid a shudder at saying anything positive about the murdered woman. 

The man looked pensive, “I’d have to think about it, but maybe” he smiled a bit, “at least it's something right?”

They both turned at the sound of the sniper nest door opening, Boone was stomping down the stairs soon after. He nodded to Cliff and motioned to Cee for them to leave. Cee waved to Cliff, who sadly waved goodbye to the pair. 

*************************************************************************************************************

“Soooo….did you talk to Manny?”

The pre-war music was blaring across the speakers. If all the ghouls weren’t already tucked safely away in the rockets Cee would've been concerned. 

However the music was making his head hurt just a bit. His poor head, it can’t catch a break. 

Boone grunted and squinted out over the horizon, the large metal dome’s roof was retracting back.

“...was it a good talk?”

Boone shrugged. The fully retracted roof now had the noses of the rockets peeking out, a low thrum could be heard even over the music.

“....are y'all friends again?”

Boone moved his head in a way that could be a shake or a nod. Steam and smoke came pouring out of the open roof. The noses were beginning to vibrate and the music tempo picked up.

Cee winced when the music hit a crashing discord, he went to ask another question but the warning alarms began blaring and the whole facility began to shake. The pair grabbed at the railing on the observing terrace in alarm as the rockets shot out. Two moved straight over them, while the third seemed to struggle, the rockets spluttered, but finally flared and it joined its fellows out of the pair’s eyesight.

The music softened and the alarms ceased. The creaking of the metal roof continued until it was sealed again. Leaving the two alone in somewhat silence.

Before the boarding, Harland had kept his word and made sure Jason paid them. The 700 caps was nice, Jason tried to sell it off as him being generous and not needing it in the Great Beyond. 

After he left Harland sidled up and whispered about how he had pretty much blackmailed the cult leader. He had laughed and winked at the pair, before leaving. He hadn’t really believed in all this “great beyond” crap, and no one was paying him to stick around. 

Cee made sure Boone got paid back the caps he invested and 300 more for all the assistance. Boone hadn’t said much, and he wasn’t saying anything now. 

The silence was uncomfortable.

“So…”

Boone looked at him.

“Thanks, this would have been a lot harder to do by myself. And you got the ghouls to leave your town alone and got paid so yeah!”

Boone shrugged.

Okay….”I meant it.” Cee leaned against the railing, “it was good to have someone around to help.” He pulled on a loose thread on his shirt, he can do this, he can ask a simple question no problem, “so, maybe you. If you want, possibly want to…..joinmeonmyquestofvengeance?”

Boone just looked at him, Cee could feel the embarrassment creep up.

“Just, I mean it's nice to not travel alone. And you know a lot of stuff. And I’m sure there is money involved. And you hate the Legion and they are giant dick bags. And I’m pretty sure we will run into them. I mean I’ve been out and about for a week and ran into some kinda creepy big deal. And….”

Boone sighed and Cee shut up.

“I dunno what to do next” he looked in the moment just tired, “I knew when I went to your room that I wouldn’t be staying here when I was squared up with you” The man paused and looked uncomfortable, but seem to steel himself to continue, “After killing Jeannie May, I didn’t see much a point in doing anything other than going out and hunting Legionnaires. You run into them, so guess that a good reason to take you up on that.”

Cee smiled big, “awesome! Wasteland partners, hunting for vengeance” he put his hand up for a high five. Boone looked at it, then at Cee, then sighed and gave a return high five.

“Let’s not make this a big thing”

“Too late!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cee is me, I blame everything on my TBI or the fact I am too punk rock for whatever.
> 
> Thank you for the kudos! Please feed me more!!!


	9. Bartering in Boulder City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He wanted to hit something.
> 
> He wanted to cry.
> 
> He wanted someone to tell him it was okay.
> 
> He wanted to be left the fuck alone.

“Man is going to be so boring around here now” Manny grinned and knocked the courier's shoulder with his. They were sitting next to each other up in the sniper’s nest. While Boone was off doing what every mysterious preparations he needed to do before leaving Novac, Cee volunteered himself to go talk to Manny about where they would be heading next. That and he wanted to say goodbye. 

“What? You're going to miss the random explosions and insanely awkward conversations we find ourselves in?” Cee snarked back, the other man laughed which also set him off into a peal of giggles.

Once they got their breath back, Manny threw an arm around his shoulder. “Yea I’ll miss that too. But seriously will miss you, you did a lot of good here in a short time. And you're the quickest friend I’ve made” his face grew more serious, “plus you got me and Boone talking again. Maybe we won't be like we were before, but it's something”

Cee leaned into the one arm hug, “yeah, sorry to take him away from here”. Actually he only felt a little guilty, but still he felt for Manny.

Manny shrugged, “if he needs to go to get his head on straight, I’d be a shitty friend to not want him to. Just watch his back, okay?”

The courier nodded, “I will do everything I can, promise”, the former NCR member shook him lightly, “and take care of your fool ass. No more getting shot in the head, or any other crazy shit you get into”

He blushed and mumbled, “not like I try” Manny laughed again, “sure kid.” Cee sighed, he was like 5 years younger than him what the fuck.

Manny patted his shoulder and let him go, “just remember Boulder City is just up 93, take the road out of town straight on.”

Cee nodded, “got it, but I wonder why meet there?” Manny shrugged, “I know that the guy hadn’t paid up yet, maybe they were meeting there to square up before finally splitting up” His face sobered up, “and I know I shouldn’t ask you this, but going to cause I still got some loyalty. Just….talk to them first before you make any big decision?”

There was a pause as Manny looked at his friend with an earnest plea in his eyes. Cee was a sucker for people being nice to him, especially now that he was all emotionally invested. He sighed and nodded, “I’ll try”

************************************************************************************************************

Entering Boulder City Cee had an unpleasant sense of deja vu. The last time he entered a town this deserted was in Nipton. Even still nightmares of the town would wake him up, he would still be able to smell the stench of burning bodies and hear the dry whispers of a man wearing a fox on his head. . He held back a shudder as an actual tumbleweed blew across the neglected roadway. 

“I’d heard rumors that Quarry Junction was having problems….didn’t know it had gotten this bad.” Boone mused out loud. Cee for once had nothing to say, he was busy trying to hold back the panic that was seeping in as they walked further into the small town. 

A bit further in Cee saw a welcome sight, a living, breathing man standing in front of a large piece of stone. His brown uniform declared him a member of the NCR, not the legion. His posture showed pensivnes not fear or torture. 

“Is that some kind of religious shrine?” he asked, pointing out the stone. Boone looked confused then gave his patented “my traveling partner just said something that annoys me” look.”

“No...why would you….never mind” he sighed, “ that's the Boulder City memorial. They commissioned it to honor the soldiers that fell during the First Battle for Hoover Dam.” He had just finished his explanation when the courier took off at a quick pace to the memorial. Boone cursed and followed.

The lone soldier had startled at the sudden appearance of another person at the stone. When Cee gave a polite smile and nod, the soldier returned it and went back to his own private thoughts. The courier bent at the waist to get closer to the inscription and mouthed the words softly. 

“On this spot….in the year 2277….Rangers and soldiers of the New California Republic….turned back the forces of Caesar’s Legion….during the Battle of Hoover Dam….Over one hundred men and women….oh….gave their lives on the Nevada soil….to defend local civilians and the principles of the republic….may this humble stone be an enduring memorial….to their valor and sacrifice….”

Boone was thoughtful enough to ignore his partner's quiet sniffles and obvious wiping at his eyes. 

*********************************************************************************************************

The entryway into Boulder City was barricaded. 

Not just with the makeshift gate and fencing, but with a lot of NCR soldiers milling around. They all looked a bad combination of agitated and bored.

Cee cursed as a pair perked up at the look of him and Boone and cockily marched up to them. They blocked the way while making it clear they were looking them up and down. Sizing them up.

“Ways blocked off civilians, move along” the speaker was barely twenty, blakc hair stuck out of his trooper’s helmet around a face burned brown by the sun. He sneered and put a hand on the pistol at his hip. 

At the word civilian Boone bristled. All Cee could think was….oh no.

“Excuse me private?” the sniper's voice was low and each word was slowly enunciated. His irritation wasn’t even directed at his partner for once but Cee felt like fleeing.

The private in questions was obvisouly an idiot as he puffed up, getting almost nose to nose with Boone, “you heard me, go the fuck back the way you came….wastelander”

Well, Cee thought, this kid is going to die.

The private’s partner, a sunburned woman about his age, at first was grinning at the antics. Her hand gripping her rifle, ready to start shooting. That is until she got a good look at the patch gracing the red beret, she then turned pale under the sunburn.

“Uh...Micheals?”

Private Micheals didn’t bother turning around, stuck in the staring contest, unaware he was a mole rat against a deathclaw, “what Peters?”

“Micheals….his hat!” That got the private to turn around, his face had a full on what the fuck look, “what about his stupid hat!?”

Boone was going to kill this kid, Cee just shook his head and took a step back. A shame, but sometimes life had to take out the dumb.

Peters was doing her best to mime at the beret while trying to make herself a smaller target for the sniper’s wrath. Micheals just gave stupid smirk turned around and actually looked at the hat in question.

Cee had seen the same face several times, usually on the Powder Gangers who realized the hissing near them was a stick of dynamite and it was far too late to run from their explosive fate. Private Micheals has finally realized he had been poking a Deathclaw with a stick.

He backed up and executed a clumsy salute, “S-s-sir, sorry sir”, behind him Peters was doing the same.

If looks could kill, the two NCR dumbfucks would be little piles of ash. Cee wasn’t even hiding his maniacal grin, this was way more fun when someone else was on the receiving end of the Boone Death Glare.

Boone sneered, “who's your CO?”. 

Oooooooooh they in trouble now, Cee snorted to himself. 

*************************************************************************************************************  
The man they led them to looked up from the radio table as they approached. He grimaced, then quickly schooled his face into a polite neutral look. The privates just mumbled, “they requested to speak to you LT” and fled. The lieutenant sighed, then turned to the pair left. Taking them in he paused when his eyes landed on the First Recon patch, but he refrained from remarking. 

“I’m Lieutenant Monroe, the commanding officer here. What do you want? Because right now I’ve got a situation with some Great Khans. The brass at McCarran has the area under lock down until it's been resolved, so I do not have a lot of time otherwise.” he said it bluntly but politely. 

“What happened!?” Cee blurted out, damn he meant for Boone to handle all the NCR stuff since they were either terrified of him or scarily respectful. Monroe just glanced at Boone, and whatever silent military guy to military guy telepathy they did seem to assure the man of Cee legitimacy. 

“One of my patrols were on its way back from Novac”, Cee looked over to Boone who just slightly raised an eyebrow, “they came under fire from the Great Khans, they radioed for reinforcements” Monroe paused, looking irritated, “but, instead of waiting for us they chased the Khans into the ruins where they were caught in the crossfire.” He gestured towards the barricade “no death, but not all the squad got out. The Khans have Private Ackerman and Private Gilbert as hostages”

The man looked frustrated, so Cee piped up “I can negotiate with them!” The two NCR men just looked at him and he wilted just a bit under their gaze, “I can, I may have an in with them. Plus I’ve had to talk to some really scary people and been pretty successful”

The two NCR men did their silent mind reading thing again. Boone just shrugged and gave a slight head nod. 

The other man’s shoulders dropped a bit, “Okay. Normally I’d turn you down since I have no idea who you are “ he stared into Cee’s eyes, brow furrowed, “but you are running with a First Recon and considering the hostages will be good as dead when we attack I’m going to give you a chance to talk to them.”

Cee nodded, “Alright, I’ll do my best to get your guys out safely.” He hoped the man could hear how earnest he was being. He did want his answers if these were the same Great Khans he was looking for, but he didn’t want the information at the cost of someone else's lives. 

Monroe walked over and released the locking mechanism on the gate, “Okay the way is mostly cleared. The group is about five to seven Khanns, the leader’s name is Jessup”. As the pair walked through the gate he motioned for them to wait. “If we hear shooting, we’ll be coming in, but it’ll probably be too late for y’all”. 

Cee looked at Boone who nodded, “okay sir”. Monroe saluted them, “good luck” and shut the gate. 

The courier couldn’t help himself, “well….that was cheerful”, Boone just grunted and started heading into the ruins. 

*************************************************************************************************************  
As much as it would have settled him, Cee agreed to the suggestion that he should walk in the store alone. They had no idea what they may be walking into, so the sniper would find a good spot to watch. His rifle primed. 

Cee agreed, it was a good plan.

Cee also did not want to walk into a room and face the men who tried to bury him. But he was not sharing that with his partner. Boone had picked up his nervousness and gave him an awkward shoulder pat. The courier had just given him a tight smile.

Walking up to the store, all he could think was that the glass was cracked but in good shape and to remember there was a rifle scope on his six. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door gently.

A commotion erupted behind the door, moving, yelling, and the sounds of guns being primed. Cee waited patiently, after a moment the door creaked up and a gun barrel poked out.

He was getting really sick of this shit.

Without giving them a chance to say anything he ground out, “I’m here to negotiate for the hostages release”

************************************************************************************************************  
He didn’t recognize the man who roughly grabbed his arm and pulled him into the dimly lit storefront. Cee allowed him to manhandle him until the door was shut, he then pulled his arm out of the other grips and glared.

The Khan sneered back, he step closer in an aggressive manner until a voice interupted his posing, “Enough for fuck sake! They got shit to say so let's hear it” The man stepped back, Cee turned to the authoritative voice behind the counter then froze.

In a second, everything felt like it was being filtered through a gauzy curtain. Sound and vision were muffled or hazy. His breathing picked up and the edges of his vision began to darken and blur. 

Oh gods I’m going to pass out.

What saved him from himself was the look on the man's face. First it was hardened, an aggressive posture of a man that took no shit. But when he got a good look at Cee he blanched up to his red bandana and his mouth opened slightly in shock.

His whisper was barely heard in the room, “what the hell….you’re….you’re the courier Benny wasted in Goodsprings.” He took a step back, “you're supposed to be dead”

That gave Cee something to focus on, he had answers to that question. His own voice was a dull,monotone “I got better.”

The man gave a shaky laugh, “Well damn and here I thought us Great Khans were tough to kill” he looked a bit resigned, “so what happens now?”

Cee just kept focused on the Khan, “I’m here to negotiate with Jessup for the hostages first, then you and I need to talk.”

There was a chuckle, “well lucky for you I’m Jessup, I’m a one stop shop for conversation” he had gotten some of his confidence back. Guess he realized there was no ghost standing here ready to pass judgement. 

The courier felt his mind going everywhere. Throughs pouring over each other. Like a dust storm he couldn't see, only feel.

For fuck sakes Cee focus. His nails dug into the palm of his hands as he nodded. 

“All right, let’s talk about settling things between you and the NCR.”

Jessup frowned and crossed his arms across his chest, already on the defensive. “What’s to negotiate? The NCR backs off, we walk out of here, no one gets hurt.” The other Khans nod, some smirk and put a hand on their weapon of choice.

Cee sighs, “Look, they don’t trust you. Hell if this goes any further south they are just going to come in weapons firing. Y’all versus what, twenty bored armed military guys? No contest.” The group shuffles and bit, looking grim, “I know y’all are bad asses. Not saying you won’t hurt them alot before the odds fuck you over.”

“What do you know?” a random Kahn growls.

He gives him an unimpressed look, “look, a guy I know, who may be one of you, told me about how tough and unrelenting you guys are. I get it, I respect it, and because he’s my friend I want you to get out of here alive.”

Jessup looks thoughtful, “who's your guy?”

Well hell, Cee didn’t want to sell Manny out. So he thought fast, “I came through Novac looking for, well you” he pointed at Jessup, “and well the shit heel who was with you.” Jessup snarled, but Cee had a feeling it wasn’t towards him. Especially since the aforementioned shit hell was nowhere in sight. “Helped a guy out there, we talked about where we came from and he mentioned the Khans.” He could see Jessup making the connection, “I didn’t know you were a Great Khan or maybe I would’ve asked more...but he seemed like a loyal guy so he probably wouldn't have told me shit”. Jessup seemed to settle down.

Cee did an eternal victory fist pump. Crisis averted. 

“So since he’s my guy, I’m trying to give you a chance here. I just want info and the hostages free. As a bonus my friend’s people don’t get put into the ground.”

The Khans mumbled amongst themselves as Jessup seemed to think about the courier’s proposal. He turned his back to confer with the rest. A few seemed against the idea, but a couple seemed to want to just go the fuck home. Cee just stood, the initial adrenaline spike was wearing off and he was tired. His hands shook a bit so he shoved them into his pockets.

Jessup turned back around to him, he seemed uncomfortable but ready, “I can’t believe I’m doing this, but all right, the hostages can go.” He motioned to another Khan, who slipped out the back. “The NCR better keep their end of the deal.”

Cee nodded, “I’ll make sure of it, even if I have to put a dead gecko on my head and dance around like a moron to distract them.” That was true, Cee was kind of tired of people ending up dead near him. The idea of the rapid pops of gunfire near him started the spiral of shakey fear. 

He took some deep measure breaths. 

The Khan didn’t seem to notice, just smirked at the proposed image, “Right, so guess you want to talk about Goodsprings?”

Funny, now that he was here at this moment. He didn’t. The idea of even talking about it again, thinking about it, made him feel nauseated. What he wanted was to walk out of the store, into the sunshine, and just never think about anything ever again. He wanted a shot of whisky, but nope they were going to talk about it. 

“I just want to know why and where the platinum chip is?”

Jessup leaned against the counter, “Well the chip, don’t have it. Benny stole it right before he stabbed us in the back” he spit into a dusty corner, “he’s probably back at the strip, laughing at me”

“I’m assuming Benny is the asshole in the checkered suit. Who the fuck is he?”

“He’s one of the Chairmen. Big shots who run the Tops casino in New Vegas” Jessup shrugged, “A friend contacted me with the info on a big job. I should’ve known the caps were too good to be true. But there was no fucking way I could pass up the chance.”

“So it was just a job”

The Khan leaned a bit into his space and looked at him straight in the eye, “yea, not much comfort, but just a job. Hell nothing personal at all.”

He was right, to know you life was just something to get rid of, like a to do list checked off. Wasn’t much fucking comfort at all.

Doesn’t matter right now, just focus on Benny.

“Why did he betray you?”

Jessup snarled again, “He’s a snake that's why!” he began shouting, “He owed us the rest of the pay for the job!” he rolled his neck and shoulders but seemed to calm down, when he spoke again it was back to a normal tone, “maybe he didn’t want to pay up.”

They both just watched each other, it was weird. This man almost helped get him killed, but they had both been fucked over by the same man. Guess it was an enemy of my enemy bullshit. 

The Khan seemed to be thinking something similar, he nodded and reached into his pocket. At this point Cee was so numb from all the revelation he didn’t even react. If it was a weapon, maybe it was time for him to stay down.

It wasn’t a weapon, Jessup opened his fist and in his palm was a silver lighter inlaid with mother of pearl on its sides.. It shimmered even in the dim light of the store. He held it out to Cee, 

“Here, a souvenir for you for what I did. It’s that asshole Benny’s lighter.” Cee reached for it, as his fingers brushed the other palms he closed his hand. Trapping Cee in a weird handshake, he leaned in close and whispered, “Shove it up his ass when you catch up with him”

He didn’t let go, Cee looked at him, searching his face for a clue. But then he got it, he nodded. 

The man wanted the promise. He wanted the courier to get his vengeance, cause it meant he was getting his too.

*************************************************************************************************************  
Boone met back up with Cee near the gate. For once Cee didn’t have anything to say. It didn’t even seem that Boone noticed, which Cee hoped would continue. He just didn't have the energy.

Every step felt heavy and took all his concentration. 

So he let Boone take point, he followed the bigger man through the gate and then just stood there. Vaguely he knew that Monroe was in front of them asking something, he just couldn’t concentrate. 

Boone put a hand on his shoulder and shook him gently. He kind of hated Boone right then.

The courier focused as Monroe kept talking, “Look, I’m glad you were able to get my people free, but there is a new problem. I just got orders to take out the Khans, hostages or not”, the lieutenant did even look at Cee, he talked directly to Boone like the other man wasn’t even there.

“No.”

Monroe looked sharply at him, and when Cee didn’t say anything else, he looked to Boone for some kind of explanation. Cee could feel Boone looking at him but kept his gaze at Monroe’s chest. 

“I said no, I gave my word. Find another way.”

He shrugged off Boone’s hand and walked slightly away from the pair. He couldn’t deal with this. 

Walking a few steps away meant he could still hear the conversation, Monroe seemed to be almost pleading with Boone.

“My hands are tied. I can’t go against orders….can’t I?”

A long pause followed, Cee was pissed. He told him no, what more did the asshole want from him! Then Boone answered, his rasping voice brooked no disagreement “If you have integrity, then you’ll honor the deal.”

It was quiet again. Cee was going to punch Monroe in his stupid…..

“....You’re right, they are free to go.”

Cee didn’t wait, he just started walking.

*************************************************************************************************************  
Boone didn’t say a word as he caught up to the courier. The pair walked in silence for a mile, Cee with his head down, trudging along and Boone casting a watchful eye around.

It wasn’t until they started on the second mile and Cee had almost fallen for the fifth time due to a pothole he hadn’t seen, that Boone had finally had enough.

“Stop.”

Cee ignored him and kept walking, the man growed and grabbed at his arm. Cee whirled around and began swinging. He was just so damn angry and this guy wouldnt fucking leave him alone. 

Reacting on some military reflex, Boone had him on the ground in a second, flat on his back.

For once instead of glare or frowning, the sniper looked surprised as hell.

“Kid? What the fuck?” he didn’t even sound mad, just confused. 

Fuck him. 

Cee scrambled to his feet and started walking the opposite direction. He could hear Boone shouting behind him. 

Why. Why can’t he just go. He didn’t even want to be here. Cee’s head and chest hurt, he felt like it was a struggle to get each breath in. 

He wanted to hit something.

He wanted to cry.

He wanted someone to tell him it was okay.

He wanted to be left the fuck alone.

He was clamoring up a dune, behind him Boone was still shouting.

He could hear the man climbing up behind him.

He reached the top.

Then it all fell out underneath him. 

He fell, body rolling and tumbling over dirt, rockes, and roots.

He would get painful, glimpses of sky.

Then it all stopped.

For a moment, he couldn’t move. Cee groaned and placed a palm on the ground, trying to push his damaged body up. 

There was buzzing in the back of his skull. 

Wincing he pushed up, then realized the buzzing wasn’t just in his skull.

Surrounding his prone body were monsters. Large insects the size of dogs flew low in the sky or walked around him on spindly legs. Their compound eyes reflected the late sun, and they were watching him. Maybe most terrifying was the sharp protrusions of their mouths.

Funnily enough, his mind was clear now. Apparently he worked really well in possible death situations. He held back the desperate laugh at the thought.

He also could no longer hear Boone.

Cee wouldn’t blame him for abandoning him. It was his own fault he was here now, he ran away from his brain, his partner, and now he was going to die by bug. Lived through a bullet, several people actively trying to murder him, and now done in by bugs. 

He did laugh just a bit. 

The sound triggered them, the nearest one charged at him. Then a shot cracked out and it fell over. 

A man yelled “Get up!”, then another shot fired.

Cee just reacted, he grabbed his bat from where it fell and just began swinging. He stumbled to his feet and swung and swung, from above him he could hear the staccato of gunfire. He just kept moving, trying to get away. 

His arms got tired, but it seemed the swarm was thinning. With the onslaught, a bulk stayed back at their nest as Cee moved. Several more aggressive ones followed him but were being killed off at a steady pace. The few left were too far for a swing. He gritted his jaw and made a decision. He ran again. He wanted to live.

Ten steps, twenty steps, and then a heavy weight hit him from behind. 

He cried out and went down. 

His bag spilled his meager possessions across the desert floor. 

The pain from the fall was jarring, but worse was the sharp, penetrating sensation in his back. 

A shot rang out again and the weight was gone.

But the sharp sensation began to burn.

He couldn’t move.

He couldn’t get enough air in to scream.

He couldn’t move his arms.

His vision blurred.

His last thought was, what a fucking joke, dying by a fucking bug bite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the reads!
> 
> Hope you’ve enjoyed so far!!! 
> 
> Still so far to go!


	10. Is This A Bad Time To Care?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hang on kid just a bit more”, he felt the shallow breathing from the chest pressed against his back.
> 
> Cee was going to make it, he was too damn scrappy to let this kill him. 
> 
> Just keep walking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now for something a little different.
> 
> Boone POV!

He knew something was off with Cee as soon as he stepped out of the store. 

The kid (sure he was only 7 years younger than himself, but the courier had one of those faces that would look 20 even as he creeped his way to 40. Plus it was fun how offended Cee would get when called a kid), either talked a lot or constantly had some kind of spatic movement going on. Flapping his hands around, eyebrows going up and down, tugging on the strip of hair on the top of his head, he was in constant motion either physically or emotionally. 

As he came out of the store, Cee walked like every step took his whole concentration. He hadn’t even looked up to see if Boone was still there or going to follow him. Just kept his head down and plodded back towards the gate. 

With one last check of the area, Boone quickly shouldered his rifle and made his own way back towards the barricade. 

*************************************************************************************************************

Cee had a thousand yard stare going on with Monroe’s chest. 

He just stood there in front of the lieutenant, not reacting to anything the man was saying. When Monroes request for a debrief went unanswered, he became more agitated and demanded to know what happened. The courier remained silent. 

Boone decided it was time to intervene. When the privates had fled from the store, he had grabbed them. The troopers had been able to hear everything while tied up in the back room. They hadn’t been able to shut up about the sheer balls it must have taken for the negotiator to promise the Khans they could go free after letting the hostages go. 

When Boone finished his verbal report, Monroe had frowned then looked very uncomfortable. His experience with NCR brass gave him an uneasy feeling that this did not bode well for Cee’s promise. He reached out and laid a hand gently on his partner, gently shaking him.

The courier had tensed under his hand, but seemed to be back to paying attention. Especially after Monroe’s little bombshell. Cee had followed that up with a declaration that made it clear he did not care about the opinion of the NCR’s higher ups.

After making his point he pulled away and walked a bit away from the conversation, his body still tense. 

So Boone again intervened. He backed his partner’s play. The sniper had his own personal feelings about the Khans.

Cee hadn’t even looked at him when it was over, just started walking out of town. 

*************************************************************************************************************

Boone gave him about a mile. 

The sniper had seen combat, he knew first hand how situations like that can mess you up. Though he knew better than to try and be sympathetic about it, he didn't have personal experience with people shooting him then burying him in a shallow grave. As he could figure it, that had to mess with your mind and soul.

From his short time with the courier, the kid seemed to be handling his trauma well. He could be a bit moody or manic, but solid.

In meeting the guys responsible for that trauma, he should’ve known it was the breaking point.

Cee had just walked off, not a word. Kept his head down and plodded along, but he sure as hell wasn’t paying attention. He’d stumbled in a cracked pot hole, trip on a decent size rock, walk off the crumbling roadway, etc. 

By the time they were into the second mile, the kid almost walked off a ledge. 

Boone had had enough, he called out “stop” but Cee didn’t even react. Frustrated Boone went to grab his arm. Without warning his partner turned on him and started clumsily throwing punches. 

Out of habit, Boone quickly dodged and used Cee’s own momentum against him. This ended up with the courier laid flat out on the cracked pavement. 

Boone was surprised, the kid had never been violent, not to him. He looked down confused, “Kid? What the fuck?” Sure not super well worded, but he was discombobulated.

Cee looked furious, got to his feet awkwardly and took off in the opposite direction.

“Kid….kid! CEE! What the hell is wrong with you!”, the courier just kept walking. Boone cursed and jogged to catch up.

He kept shouting, but Cee just struggled to go up a dune. Then, he was there one moment and gone the next. 

*************************************************************************************************************

The sniper didn’t hesitate, he pulled his rifle from his shoulder and fired. To his ears, his voice was hoarse and rasping as he yelled, “Get up!” and fired another shot.

Cazadors ranked up with Deathclaws on the list of Really Bad Things That Will Kill You l in the NCR. The large insects were aggressive, territorial, and venomous. If you survived the initial onslaught and got the anti-venom in you quickly, you still were out of commision for days.

And Cee had tumbled directly into a nest.

Boone watched as the courier got to his feet swinging, he fired more and more shots.  
Time stretched on, the blur of the bat, the rhythmic kickback and crack of a shot. Over and over.

As Cee made it closer to the opening of the small valley Boone noticed with relief that most of the swarm were more interested that the threat was gone. They creeped up the walls back into the holes that honeycombed. Unfortunately a few more of the more aggressive bugs were tailing his partner. 

Cee’s swings stuttered as the few remaining attackers shuffled out of his range. 

“Come on kid” Boone muttered as he aimed. Then the courier turned and ran, not a bad strategy but with his back turned he didn’t see one of the hunters dart forward to chase him. Boone cursed and moved to get a bead on it.

Cee kept running, not seeing the cazador getting closer. 

Boone felt the calm settle him as the shot got closer to being perfect, his finger flexed on the trigger.

The cazador threw its weight against Cee, just as they went down he pulled the trigger.

*************************************************************************************************************

Every ten to twenty steps Boone would either curse himself for not having any damn anti-venom on him (he was Recon he knew damn better), Cee for running head long off the dune (he knew this wasn’t fair, the kid was struggling but he wasn’t in the mood to be logical), or Cazadors for just existing and being a pain in his ass.

He paused, adjusting the limp body so it rested more comfortably on his shoulders. Then began his march again.

Just keep walking, walk, walk, curse, then walk some more. 

Boone had never thought he would see The Strip again. The place held too many memories, and he worked very hard not to dwell on those same memories. But seeing the garish lights turn on in the distance he felt relieved.

“Hang on kid just a bit more”, he felt the shallow breathing from the chest pressed against his back.

Cee was going to make it, he was too damn scrappy to let this kill him. 

Just keep walking.


	11. Finagling in Freesides

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Envoy, shit I had nothing to do with that spy. Not my fault they aren't tough enough to make it in the Freesides” he smirked, “see nothing at all to worry about. I’m handling the situation, why don’t you let the man know you found nothing out and let me handle my business...or you know maybe them poor troopers ain’t the only ones not tough enough”
> 
> “Go fuck yourself Pacer”

And so, the best way to remember the difference is ‘If you bite it and die, it is poisonous, if it bites you and you die, it is venomous’. Any questions?” The blond doctor did not even look up from taking Cee’s vitals to check if there had been any sign of a question, “good, take it easy for a few days, plenty of water and rest.” He unwound the pressure cuff from the bend of the courier's elbow. As he stood his head just brushed the top of the tent, “when you go out again remember to take plenty of anti-venom, or do not if you prefer the dulce periculum.” 

The doctor chuckled to himself, apparently there was some inserted humor in his lecture. Cee was too fatigued to try and figure it out or snark back. He just numbly nodded.

“Well luckily for you, though I am a poor substitute for a medical professional, I am an adequate enough doctor to sign you off as recovered.” He made his point by dramatically flourishing his hands. Since the man was trying to be cheerful, Cee at least tried to crack a smile at his antics. 

“Thank you Dr. Gannon, for everything you did.” The earnest compliment brought a flush to the other man’s face, “Uh well….don’t wander into any more Cazador nest you man. Undoing all my fine work would be an insult!”

Cee chuckled weakly, “yes doctor”

“Well then, ad meliora as they say. I’ll leave you to easily and gently make your way outside. I believe your broody stoic companion is waiting for you” He opened the tent flap, and sure enough Boone was standing out there. Very broody and very stoic. Cee grimaced.

*************************************************************************************************************

The Followers were letting them stay the night, free of charge.

Boone nodded his thanks to offer.

Boone had not said a word to him, only giving him a curt nod when he stepped outside.

Cee was hoping it was because they were sharing the small tent with a woman sleeping off a binge.

Cee figured he was going to wake up tomorrow with just the woman, Boone having had enough of his shit, taking the route back to sanity in Novac. 

Between that and the mini coma he had while being treated, he did not sleep much that night. 

*************************************************************************************************************

He hadn’t said anything about it.

Other than a slap upside the head and a gruff, “be more careful”, Boone didn’t bring up his meltdown.

Not a word.

Even weirder, he acted just the same as he did before Cee’s little heart to heart with the Khans.

The only minor difference was he seemed more….alive here. A bit more animated, his facial expressions more emoted. Cee went over these thoughts from where he was sitting on a faded Sunset Sarsaparilla crate that Boone had firmly but gently pushed him to sit while he ran some errands for their departure. 

The courier hadn’t been super pleased about being told to sit! Stay! But the man had dragged him several miles across the desert and saved his life. He would let it slide...this time. 

For once he could just relax and let someone else handle the problem.

Also anytime he tried to walk faster than a sedate pace, his lungs felt like they were going to burst into flames..

So sitting on a crate and people watching, that was the current plan. 

Boone had been thoughtful enough to drop him off next to the sturdy stone walls. Not only were they good for leaning on, the shadow they cast made the temperature somewhat bearable. He leaned back and drowsily watched the Followers milling around, taking care of patients or doing whatever duties doctors do when they aren’t trying to put a person together. 

He sat in a weird twilight of sleep not sleeping for a while until a hand gently shook his shoulder. “C’mon kid, it's time to go”

Cee sleeping mumbled, “m’fine, where are we going”

“We’re off to the see the King”

The courier smiled up, “Okay sure, whatever you say Boone”

The man looming over him rolled his eyes, “for real, we need to go see the King if we want to get into the Strip”

Cee just smiled wider as he got up to his feet, a bit wobblier than before but hey he made it up. “Yeah yeah” 

Boone just cursed and grabbed his bicep to steady him.

*************************************************************************************************************

Cee knew he was gaping, he also knew Boone was standing there looking smug at Cee gaping at the building. 

The building was in fair condition compared to the crumbling ruins around it. The sun bleached brick walls were littered with decaying posters of acts and entertainers that hadn’t existed since the bombs dropped decades ago. Along it several people dressed in worn blue jeans and leather jackets lounged. They would give passerbys a wink or glare, above them in lit up pink lettering was the work King’s School of Impersonation. 

“In my defense, I thought you meant it as some kind of metaphor” he muttered.

Boone just gave a slight smile and pushed the door open.

The lobby was a let down after the garish majesty of the outside facade. It held a cracked and empty walk up counter, some dusty furniture, and some wandering blue jean leather jacket wearing people. Boone ignored all of that and led them to a door where a man was standing guard. 

The man looked at them sullenly, he was tall and lean. He stood out by wearing dark pants and a dark colored jacket over a striped shirt. “What do we have here? More petitioners for the King” he snarled out of the side of his mouth. 

Oh joy a bully, “What do we have here, a jackass?” he shot back. The man’s face contorted with rage as he pushed off the wall, “you little fucker” He took an aggressive step towards the pair, and their hands went to their weapons. Everyone in the lobby froze.

The standstill was broken by an exapasted looking young person, with a pompadour and white shirt opening the door and sighing, “Pacer knock it off, the King says let them in.” Pacer glared at the newcomer, but stepped back. 

Boone took point, as Cee followed him he threw a smirk at Pacer who growled.

The room they walked into had small tables and chairs strewn about. Along the far wall a stage was set up with a lone man dressed in leather and blue jeans swiveling his hips while crooning off key. The other person in the room was seated,with his chin propped up on a fist. His hair was slicked back neatly and his white jacketed shoulders were slumped. Crowding his feet was the weirdest dog Cee had ever seen, it had one robot leg….and its brain was in a clear bubble filled with a bubbling blue liquid.

Noticing them the dog raised his head and gave a mechanically growl. His master didn’t even look, he just waved at a nearby table. Cee took that as an invitation to sit, so he did. Boone stayed standing, crowding up behind him. 

The King ignored them, looking bored as he watched the stage show. When the guy finished, he gave an awkward bow and wave combo and exited the stage. The King clapped until he disappeared from the room. He then turned and gave the waiting pair a debonair smile. 

“My apologies,” he drawled, “I give all my guys my full attention when they practice. And for Pacer, he’s overprotective but a good friend.” The man was damn charming Cee would give him that. 

Cee shrugged, “sure, I get it.” The man smiled widely and Cee cursed in his scarred brain when he blushed in returned. Boone shot him a side eye and took over the conversation. “We're here to talk about….entering the Strip. If I’m not mistaken you're the man who makes sure that can happen.”

The king continued to smile but it grew shrewd, “You heard right, but what we really need to talk about is what can you do for Freesides…”

*************************************************************************************************************

As the pair walked up to the gate Cee whispered, “why do we have to do this?”

Boone shrugged, “thought you were all about helping people?”

Well that was slightly rude, “I am! But why do we have to help this King guy to help Freeside to get into the Strip!?”

Boone sighed and grabbed his partner's arm to escort him to an alleyway, “look, to get into the Strip you need to either pass a credit check….and trust me we won’t….or have a passport. You don’t have one” Cee gasped, “you looked through my stuff!” Ignoring him Boone went on, “and mine expired a while ago. They are almost as expensive as a credit check.” the sniper looked around then continued, “but….you can get a ….really convincing one in Freeside but guess who controls all the influences there.”

Cee frowned, “No guess, the King”

“Right, not only will they not make one for you but he gets put out if you try and go around him. No worth the trouble. We do this quick bit of charity for him and we get the passports”

“Alright, so we just have to check this guy out, easy right?”

Boone shrugged, “should be”

*************************************************************************************************************  
It was annoyingly easy.

All they had to do was pretend to be some tourist and hire a tour guide-bodyguard.

Not just any guide, one name Oris.

He wasn’t hard to miss. The man was taller than Boone and decked out in spikey metal armor that reflected the desert sun annoyingly into Cee’s eyes everytime the man moved. 

He was also arrogant and bragged. Every stop had some story about how he defended someone from this or some other persons from that. 

Cee had no idea how Boone kept a bored disinterested look on his face the entire tour. Maybe he was plotting the man’s death.

They went to turn down another street when their guide held up a hand. “Hold up.” They both paused, and behind the man’s back Cee raised an eyebrow at his partner. The sniper didn’t respond, he was watching the area intently.

“Sorry guys, got a bad feeling.” Oris faced them, looking serious, “let's take this way”

“Sure” Cee just stared when Boone agreed. What the hell. Sure it's a job but that was sketchy as hell! The man led the way, and before Cee could hiss whisper at him Boone just grabbed the back of his jacket and dragged him along. 

Wiggling, Cee shook off the grasping hand and maybe pouted just a bit. 

As the trio walked along the short cut, Oris was quiet. He seemed to be listening and looking around every couple steps. He was making Cee nervous. So nervous it was almost a relief when four men jumped out from behind buildings and cars.

He didn’t even have time to be relieved, Oris pulled his gun out and three shots echoed out. All four men dropped. 

Cee shook his head to get the ringing out. Even Boone winced and rubbed at his head. 

Oris whirled around and struck a cocky pose, what the fuck. “My instinct never fails me, lucky y'all were with me.”

The pair just stared at him. Cee knew he wasn’t the most intelligent guy out there, but even he could do basic fucking math.

“Uhm….yeah no.” He pointed at the bodies, “Four” then pointed at Oris who was still holding his gun “Three” Oris just looked confused.

“What the kid is here is trying to say is you fired three bullets….and there are four bodies on the ground” Fuck you Boone the explantion was super clear with out you adding an explanation, Cee groused to himself. 

Their guide looked panicked for a minute, then smiled “ Er, noticed that, did you? I keenly aimed one of the shots through some soft tissue of one of them to hit the man behind him.”

Cee threw his hands up, “You are an idiot!”

*************************************************************************************************************

“Good job” the King laughed as they told him about Oris’s duplicity, “the boys will get him off the street….when no one is looking of course.” He winked at them and petted the robo-dog when it barked at Boone.

“Sorry about Rex, he hates rats, and hats. Maybe cause it rhymes with rats, so he hates people who wear hats.” he shrugged, “what can you do.”

“Uhm burn all the hats?” Cee lamely quipped and gave Boone’s beret a look. “Don’t even think about it” the man deadpanned. 

The king grinned at them, “well y'all have proved yourself reliable and trustworthy. This first run was a bit of a test, now I have something more important. You get this taken care of, you're golden with the Kings.”

Of course, the tour guide job was too damn easy. 

*************************************************************************************************************

The King's new request led the pair back to the Old Mormon Fort. The tall blonde doctor from before almost tripped over himself offering to help, grateful for the opportunity to not be taking care of incoming patients. He led them to the tent the King’s friends were recuperating in. 

The man who looked up when they entered frowned, his pale, heavy wrinkled face shutting down. “What is it? Can’t you see I want to be left alone with my friends here?”

The doctor opened his mouth but Cee quickly spit out, “the King sent us.”

The man slumped with relief, “That's good, real good. You here to talk about the men who attacked us?”

“Yeah, he asked us to talk to you and your friends about it”

“ I didn’t see much, Wayne got a better eye than me, but it happened last night. Me and the guys had just spent our last caps at the Atomic Wrangler. Was broke but feeling pretty good you know. Feeling too good to realize we were in the squatter side of town.” He shrugged, “it was there these two big fellows came up and asked if we were local, we said yes, then they started arguing with us. Calling us names and getting all up in our faces.”

He paused and just shook his head, “no call for it, I couldn’t believe they were just coming up and yelling at folk. I looked around to see if there was anyone else around and BAM!” he clapped his hands, making the two other men in the tent jump, “found myself face first into the dirt. That's the last I remember, woke up here”

The old man looked tired and rubbed his hands together. Cee just smiled gently,”thank you,” he turned to the other two men, “Wayne?”

The youngest man raised his hand reluctantly and scowled, “Roy doesn’t know what he’s talking about, I got hit in the head so much its all fuzzy”

“Anything you can remember will help us.”

Wayne looked down, he mumbled a bit,”S’not much, just I get that they were better dressed than most Freesiders….and….well I swear one of them called the other Lou Tenant.”

“You mean lieutenant! Man you can be dumb as a mutant” Roy interupted. Wayne responded by showing him his middle finger.

“Thank you Wayne, that gives us a place to start” Wayne looked startled, and gave Cee a small smile before ducking his head back down.

*************************************************************************************************************

When they returned to the King, his guard dog Pacer was nowhere to be seen. After a quick debrief, the King sent them off to get any information they could about the increased presence of NCR soldiers and citizens. 

Cee was getting a bit annoyed with having to walk all over the place, they were pinging from the Fort to the Kings, to the Kings to the Fort, now Fort to Kings to only go to a NCR “squatters” town. All for what was starting to sound like a pissing contest between the native Freesiders and the encroaching NCR folk. He kept this to himself, figuring his NCR former soldier pal wouldn’t appreciate his opinion on the matter. 

At the mini town, the missionaries bowed up as soon as they crossed the boundary line between their town and Freesides. 

The loudest of them, feeling brave with the NCR soldiers watching from outside the fence, demanded they pass some kind of NCR citizen test. At this point the courier was fucking done, he couldn’t even remember if he was technically a NCR citizen or anything past a month ago. Boone managed to maneuver him out of the blowhard’s line of sight and easily passed their trumped up bullshit quiz.

From behind the sniper Cee heard the now friendly NCR missionary mention they had been harassed repeatedly by Freeside natives. 

Most of them had to get food and supplies from a NCR supplied soup kitchen. 

The kitchen only served NCR citizens, but since the pair had proven to be so, gave them the password.

Hope.

Great, off again, back to Freesides.

*************************************************************************************************************

Hope got them by the NCR guards, who were nervously holding their rifles and scanning the area behind the fallen rubble.

The atmosphere inside the dinghy store was tense, the line shuffled slowly forward as each participant got their package of food and supplies, they then exited swiftly making room for the next. It was making Cee tense, he felt trapped in the line. He fidgeted and began to dig at the skin around his nails.

When they finally reached the counter a tired woman in worn leathers went to hand them a package wrapped in brown paper. 

“Sorry no, thank you, we aren’t here for that” She narrowed her eyes suspiciously and looked over to a guard. Cee put his hands up placatingly, “and we are not here to cause trouble. We are hoping to stop some trouble” Her eyes didn't stop looking narrowed, but she waved the guard off. She motioned for another woman to take her place and gestured for them to follow her into the back room.

Once there she locked the door and put her hand on the gun on her hip. “Alright talk”

Cee looked at Boone who nodded, “okay right so we were asked by the King to investigate the issues going on between the Freesiders and NCR.” Cee rushed on, “so like there has been attacks against Freesiders by NCR troopers and now rumors that a soup kitchen will only serve NCR peoples. It’s looking really bad and we, meaning the King and us, want to stop this before it gets really really bad”

The woman held up a hand to stop any further nervous babble, “Okay, first….who are you two? I recognize that one's badge, but could’ve looted it”

Boone frowned, a real true pissed off frown. The woman got tense and Cee cringed a bit. 

“It’s real….” 

And silence.

“Right...and you” she turned to Cee.

“Me….I’m not that important, really just doing a favor for the King...and Julie she mentioned things were getting bad too. She and the Followers kept me from dying from my own stupidity” he smiled, hoping it looked adequately sheepish. 

The hand moved away from the gun, “I know Julie, she's good people. Major Elizabeth Kieran and to be honest I’m surprised the King cares.”

The major leaned back against the door, “This all was supposed to be a relief effort for both the NCR and Freeside. Here you don’t set up shop doing anything without working with the Kings so we sent an envoy.” She grimaced, “ they came back to us so beaten they almost died. The brass didn’t want to send more resources than the minimum promised after that and the Kings made it clear what they thought.”

Cee was now confused, “I hadn’t heard any of that, but I mean we just got into Freesides a few days ago.” he nodded, “okay, we’ll go back and get this cleared up. It may just be some really fucked up miscommunication. I’m hoping it's just that”

She nodded back, “me too, a turf war like this. Only citizens are going to get hurt, and Freeside can’t handle a war with the NCR.”

Back to the Kings. 

*************************************************************************************************************

Oh joy, Pacer was back to holding the lobby wall up.

Cee ignored him and reached to open the door. His hand never reached the handle. Pacer gripped his wrist bruisingly, from behind him he heard Boone shout and the sound a gun being cocked.

“Back off guard dog, you fire every guy here will be on you and your bitch here in no time...bang bang you’d both be dead” he smiled maliciously. Cee pulled at his wrist, “ what the hell fucker, I’m doing the King’s errands so what the fuck is with the treatement”

Pacer shook him a bit, “keep your voice down, we have to talk”

From over his right shoulder a gun barrel appeared, Boone grabbed his left shoulder and hissed, “Let him go….now.” Pacer looked at the gun, his hand shook a bit where it was digging into Cee’s wrist. “Put...put the gun down and I’ll let go.” The barrel moved closer to Pacer’s head and now Boone was chest to back with Cee, “Now.”

The King had sweat breaking out across his forehead. 

He slowly let go of the courier and put his hands up, “Fine, fine whatever...we need to have a little conversation” Boone held the gun for a few seconds more, before moving back and reupholstering his sidearm. With some breathing room Cee rubbed his wrist and glared, “so fucking talk”

Pacer hissed at him, “keep your voice down” he stepped away from the door a bit. “Look, King told me he had you checking on all this shit with the NCR. I know you went to talk to that bird running the pity kitchen out there. Whatever she told you was a lie and you don’t need to be bothering the big man with any of it.

Staring at him incrediusly Cee whispered back, “are you fucking kidding me, I was told y’all nearly killed her envoy! Does he even know they sent one, or did you interfere?”

“Envoy, shit I had nothing to do with that spy. Not my fault they aren't tough enough to make it in the Freesides” he smirked, “see nothing at all to worry about. I’m handling the situation, why don’t you let the man know you found nothing out and let me handle my business...or you know maybe them poor troopers ain’t the only ones not tough enough”

“Go fuck yourself Pacer”

He shrugged, “I know I got my message across. Now I’ve got business to take care of, I’m sure ours is finished” he saluted them with two fingers and walked out the lobby.

Watching them Cee muttered, “does he really think he’s scared us at all?”

“Idiot” Cee fully agreed with his partner's assessment. 

*************************************************************************************************************

The King was pissed.

At first he was angry at the soup kitchen only serving the NCR citizens, concluding that the “goons” attacking Freesiders were the NCR muscling in. His anger bled into confusion when he was informed of the envoy. 

An envoy he had no idea about. This brought up their conversation with Pacer.

He didn’t want to believe that Pacer would do this. Glaring at his two errand boys, he sat back in silence. They refused to be intimidated and stared back. The King thought about it then sighed, he admitted that Pacer had always been over protective, and he may have taken it too far this time. This didn’t have to end in bloodshed. He was willing to try and work things out, even send his own people (meaning he was going to send them).

They were talking terms when a King came running in, “Boss! A shootout at the train station! Pacer took some guys and now they are having it out with the NCR!”

The King growled, “Fucking damnit!” and slammed his fist on the table. He stood up, “alright boys lets go make some peace” He pointed at the pair, “you two with me.”

*************************************************************************************************************

Several members of both sides were already laying dead on the ground as they rounded the bend to the train station. The King clenched his jaw, “alright...you tow go out there and get them army yahoos to stop shooting, I’ll work on my guys. No funny business”

Always fun to be vaguely threatened by your allies in a gunfight. 

So Cee found himself walking into the middle of the battlefield with only a set of brass knuckles and a dingy white t-shirt that he held up. Boone walked at his side, hands up. The NCR troopers either glared or lifted their guns.

“I’m here to talk to Major Kiernan to negotiate a ceasefire!!!” he yelled as loud as he could, ending in a cough. Nerves were making his throat dry.

It took some time for a runner to get to the Major and for her to show up. Surrounded by 4 heavily armed troopers. Her smile was strained, “Well hello again.”

Cee’s arms were tired but he kept the shirt up, “hello, kinda shitty day we’re having hunh?”

The major laughed a bit, “ yeah no shit, you here for some negotiating?”

“Yeah sooooo, funny story that is really just fucking tragic. The King, no clue this was happening and never heard of an envoy.” She frowned as he continued, “as far as he knew it, the NCR was beating up his people, Freesiders, and trying to muscle in. His right hand thought it was best he handle the situation and decided to try and get rid of the NCR in Freeside. By beating up your people and now this shootout”

He shifted his weight just a bit, “so you don't want this, he doesn't. He’s back there making sure his guys stand down. Wants to make peace” He paused, wiggling his fingers to get the numbness to go away, “so can we stop this, everyone retreat back and work on that….please?”

The major just stood there. Either thinking of their proposal or seeing if a shot was going to ring out from the other side. Cee’s arms were starting to feel like tingly noodles when she gave a nod, “They retreat, we will back up.” 

Cee nodded, “Okay, I’m just going to walk back then” he gave thumbs up.

Returning back, they found the King crying silently.

They had found Pacer dead behind a barricade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! Went on vacation and forgot to mention that fact!
> 
> This chapter was tough to write, but trucked in through!!!
> 
> Good guy Boone understands trauma, he isn’t going to judge or treat Cee any differently :3 I know I appreciate that when I have episodes. But it’s not always the case.


	12. Swinging on the Strip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finding a casino full of flashing lights and people gambling their caps away wasn’t easy in the sea of other casinos full of flashing lights and crowds of people gambling their caps away.

The thoroughfare for the Strip’s gates were intimidating as hell. Chain link fencing ran along both sides with barbed wire wove in terrifying glistening weavings. Two bulky securitrons rolled slowly within only stopping to check a passport or run a credit check. 

The line was rather small in the early morning, but the process was slow. While the pair had been waiting in line, behind them a young man yelled “fuck it” and rushed the gates. Now as he was clutching his newly made, totally legitimate passport Cee got to walk past the guy’s body.

He was nervous. 

Ralph has assured him his work was on point and never failed.

Boone assured him he wasn’t going to die in a laser volley from angry Securitrons.

The line shuffled forward. 

“Boone….”

No answer.

“Booooone…”

Just a bit of a twitch in the jaw.

“Booooooone…..” he hissed.

The man turned and looked down, “what?”.

“I think I may pass out”

Boone just stared at him, then turned back around, “no you won’t. This is not the worst thing you’ve been through”

So Cee did the only mature, rational thing that came to mind, and flipped him off.   
*************************************************************************************************************

The Securitrons flickering screen showed a cartoonishly thuggish face set with an authoritative glare. Cee wasn’t sure, but it seemed it was looking at him very very closely. It’s speaker crackled with a high whine of feedback followed by a flat motone delivery, “passport or….submit to….a credit….check….check.”

Cee held up his passport, using it to shield himself from the glaring computer screen. He heard a whirring noise, then two beeps, “Passport confirmed……”. He peered over the passport to see the machines rolling back and the gates creaking open. 

Oh thanks whatever spirits in the world that worked. 

As they walked through he heard, “Hey baby! You got the caps, we have what you want...what you need! “

Boone bumped into him “Kid, keep moving and close your mouth”

*************************************************************************************************************

Even in the daylight it was bright. 

The sun glared overhead competing with flashing, whirling lights from the signs and casinos. 

The noise was maybe worse. It was a roar. Prostitutes were cat calling every passerby to drum up business for themselves or the business they worked for. Criers tried to entice or shame the same folks to enter their casinos, lying that they would win it big. Tourists yelled and in return were yelled at by the roving security forces. 

It was a bit much. 

Until he was completely overwhelmed.

Cee wobbly stepped off the main fair and sat on a fountain. He just held his hands over his ears and tried to breathe. 

Too loud, too bright, too much motion.

He felt the tension creeping up his back to his shoulders. Tightness increased on the side of his head. 

Just breathe.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Time just went on by, he would see shadows move near his feet as passerbys blocked the sun and lights for a moment before moving on. Bits of moisture hit his back as the fountain continued spraying plumes of water in the air. Life just moved on past him.

Just breathe.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

One shadow passed over him and stayed. He glanced up, one eye closed against the glare. It was Boone. Just standing there. Not even looking at him, just glancing around. Cee blinked and got the other eye open, “Boone?”

The man still didn’t look at him, just grunted, “take all the time you need.”

*************************************************************************************************************

Finding a casino full of flashing lights and people gambling their caps away wasn’t easy in the sea of other casinos full of flashing lights and crowds of people gambling their caps away. 

Boone had gotten grumpier than normal after the third place they stopped at that turned out not to be the Tops. The employees' cheerful manipulations to get them to stay and spend their caps there had the man growling as Cee corralled him out the doors. 

They had gone up and down the strip three times and somehow missed the Tops every damn time. 

*************************************************************************************************************

“Maybe we should just head back to the Fort and try again tomorrow?” Boone silently glared which Cee took as a no, “Look, I’m tired and have a headache, your …. Less….socially inclined?” More silent glaring, “we aren’t going to get much done if we are both worn the fuck out.”

More silence.

So Cee tried some psychology, “isn't it better to do …. an operation? Well rested?”

Boone’s glare turned to an unimpressed look, “Okay I was trying!” 

A sigh, “...fine...we will start back up early tomorrow morning.”

Cee winced, “uhm how early?”

The man just smirked as he began leading them back to the gate to Freesides.

“Boone! How early!?!?!?” He started to jog after his friend, when he was interrupted by a Securitron rolling into his path. 

“Howdy, fancy seeing you here.”


	13. Lost At The Lucky 38

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Uh...howdy Victor?” beside him Boone was muttering, “of course he knows the damn robot”, Cee chose to ignore him and so did Victor as it rambled on.
> 
> “Ain’t it just a treat to see you here friend!” Victor happily rolled back and forth, “I knew you had the gumption!!”
> 
> He smiled weakly, “yeah thats me...full of gumption….but what the fuck are you doing here? Are you following me?” he looked at the robot suspiciously, “cause I could swear I saw you in Novac…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s not dead!!!
> 
> Sorry for such long radio silence a lot of personal stuff happened with work and my mental health and this fell a bit to the wayside. But never forgotten!

Cee just stared.

Boone just stared.

The flickering green face of a smiling cowboy just continued to smile and flicker.

“Uh...howdy Victor?” beside him Boone was muttering, “of course he knows the damn robot”, Cee chose to ignore him and so did Victor as it rambled on.

“Ain’t it just a treat to see you here friend!” Victor happily rolled back and forth, “I knew you had the gumption!!”

He smiled weakly, “yeah thats me...full of gumption….but what the fuck are you doing here? Are you following me?” he looked at the robot suspiciously, “cause I could swear I saw you in Novac…”

“Why am I here? Why to pass along an invite!” the machine rolls behind the pair and begins to herd them towards the casino. Cee protested and Boone went for his sidearm. “None of that, we are all friends here! Two other securitrons rolled from there watchful positions to flank them. “It’s just a friendly meeting, no reason to get het up!”

As they shuffled forward, Cee looked up at the rotating sign declaring their destination as the Lucky 38.

*************************************************************************************************************  
The air in the casino’s lounge was stifling. Everything had an air of disuse and time long passed. The wheels of the securitrons escorting them left winding trails in the caked dust that made up the floor. 

Victor hadn’t answered any of their questions on who had sent the forceful invite, he would just chirp “The Boss!” happily and continue to herd them along with his two companion robots. 

The silence was making him twitchy, which he didn’t handle well, “what the hell is up with this place, are we going to die here cause thought it would be some bullshit at least it would be the nicest fucking place I’ve died in.”

The robots didn’t respond. That was depressing. 

“No one comes in here, “Cee turned his head to Boone who was looking around, “place has been locked down since….well no one even has stories about it being opened.” He turned his head to Cee, shrugged and went back to glancing around.   
The stopped in front a tube of tarnished chrome, the dingy window showing an elevator apparatus. Victor rolled around in front of them, “well here we are, this will take you to the Penthouse!” The door slid open and they went to step in. “Oh wait now!” Cee raised an eyebrow at the flailing robot arms, “what the fuck now?”

Victor seemed to roll a bit back and forth sheepishly, “Sorry, but only the Courier. Your soldier friend here needs to wait.”

The both just stared at him.

He rolled side to side, “No worries though! I can have him wait in the Presidential Suite, I’m sure a nice clean up would just hit the spot while you wait.”

“You do know that sounds suspicious….right?” Cee waved his hands around, “like come on!”

Boone just grunted, “I guess there's no talking my way in?”

The robot just rolled around more.

He sighed, “Fine…” he put a hand on Cee’s shoulder, “keep your weapons close, I hear anything I’ll head your way.”

Cee just pouted, “this sucks”, in response he got a shoulder squeeze before Boone gently ushered him into the elevator. 

*************************************************************************************************************  
“Well hello sugar” Cee blinked as the securitron rolled over….he figured the languid side to side motion was supposed to be seductive. He mostly just felt really uncomfortable. It...she propped a claw on the mid-section of her chassis and leaned into his space. Her screen blinked a couple times. 

She was batting her “eyes” at him. 

Cee just nodded.

“Mr. House is waiting for you in his office. Don’t keep him waiting” her screen flashed once.

Oh...she was winking.

Cee gave her a half hearted wave and a muttered thanks.

*************************************************************************************************************

The computer was talking to him but Cee was mostly just trying to come to terms with the giant ass computer taking up the entire office. He had mentioned something about this meeting being “a long time coming” and something about metaphors on coming a long way.

He was a giant computer.

A giant computer man….manputer?

Cee’s situational awareness came screeching back on the question, “ Now that you have reached your destination, what do you make of what you have seen?”

The courier answered the best he could under such circumstances, “what?”

The image on the giant screen was static, a man dapperly dressed cast in green light but he could hear the aggravation when the speakers attached repeated the question.

“Oh...you mean New Vegas...or like here here?”

A sigh filled the room, amazing disappointment in surround sound.

“Both.”

“Oh, well I’ve only really seen Freesides and it’s pretty neat what they have done with what they had to work with. The Strip is super shiny, I may have gone light blind for a few seconds. So many fucking people.” Cee fiddled with his shirt, “Uhm, here is pretty nice, even though…” he trailed off.

The speakers hummed, an actual hum not just a machine hum, “yes the refugees of Freeside have done as well as they can. As for the Lucky 38, she is in decline but yet still inspires a sense of awe.”

Cee was not going to argue with the smug computer man.

“Vegas has always been one of a kind. Even with this sliver, I managed to save an echo of itself. I manage to preserve its spirit.``

The self congratulating tone seemed to be winding up to a long speech on his accomplishments. So Cee stepped forward, “Look, why all this VIP treatment. I’m just a courier. You don’t know me and I don’t know you.”

A distorted laugh followed, “down to business then. An employee of mine has ran off with a pierce of valuable property and I want it back.”

“Okay, sorry for that, but what does that have to do with me?”

“Oh I believe you are intimately familiar with this item and it’s thief”

Cee shrugged, then thought that maybe the computer man couldn’t see him, “no clue what you are trying to hint at”

The sigh was back.

“I was the one who put in the order for the transport of the Platinum chip. I am your employer of a sort and the employer of the man who left you for dead.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why do I even write these? I mean hey thanks for staying until after the credits but I am boring.


	14. Pressure in the Presidential Suite

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I met Mr. House.”
> 
> When Boone didn’t say anything, Cee peeked under his arm. The man was just standing, frowning down at the carpet. “He’s an ass, if you were wondering,” Cee settled back under the darkness of his arm, “He’s also the guy who ordered the delivery of the chip. It’s apparently super important to his machinations or something. Benny decided he was going to be the master of machinations and sooo...pew pew to my head.”
> 
> He laughed, it was kinda of shrill, but he couldn’t stop. “Lost it all because two assholes are in some kind of pissing contest.”

Cee’s pressed his throbbing forehead onto the cool rusty walls of the elevator. He imagined the bullet lodged in his brain was pulsating, sending pain radiating from his head down his spine. A blood stained piece of metal laughing maniacally in the dark cave that was his skull.

Well shit, thats morbid as fuck.

Before his brain could continue on the fun ride of dark and strange thoughts the elevator dinged dully and jerked to a stop. Cee winced, but pushed off the wall and straightened up. He rubbed his temples one handedly while waiting for the doors to open. 

Everytime he thought he was getting an idea of what had happened to him, some new, crazier angle appeared. It was never fucking ending. 

The doors finally creaked open, revealing a scowling Boone. Cee gave him a smile, a pathetic, wincing smile. But he was trying his best. 

“What the hell happened” the man barked as Cee slumped past him into the lobby. He winced and continued his awkward shuffling until he reached a dingy but plush couch. He flopped on it and threw an arm over his eyes. 

Just needed five minutes to breathe.

He could hear Boone huff, but the man stayed mostly silent as he paced the lobby floor.

“I met Mr. House.”

When Boone didn’t say anything, Cee peeked under his arm. The man was just standing, frowning down at the carpet. “He’s an ass, if you were wondering,” Cee settled back under the darkness of his arm, “He’s also the guy who ordered the delivery of the chip. It’s apparently super important to his machinations or something. Benny decided he was going to be the master of machinations and sooo...pew pew to my head.”

He laughed, it was kinda of shrill, but he couldn’t stop. “Lost it all because two assholes are in some kind of pissing contest.”

The laughing became giggles.

“And now….now! House is willing to pay me to get that damn thing back from Benny. Oh and get my vengeance, for free!”

He giggled until it became hiccups.

“It's...it's all fucked up….”

Boone sighed, “yea kid….yeah it is.”

*************************************************************************************************************

Since Cee had asked for a day to think over House’s proposal, the computer man had generously not thrown them out of the presidential suite.

After Boone had left, mumbling something about “check ins”, “NCR” and other military jargon that Cee had no idea about, he decided to indulge in the amenities and not think for a while. 

Which meant setting up a small wall of glass bottles from the bar between the steaming bathtub and the bathroom door. The wall would be a somewhat good barricade, if he wasn’t also going through the alcohol in them at a pretty steady pace. Several empty bottles were sitting precariously on the tubs edge as he crooned badly with the radio.

He had declared, outloud as his travel partner was leaving, that he wasn’t going to brood on the decision. There had also been an internal follow up to that agreeing that there was no point in brooding. 

And it was true, he wasn’t brooding.

He had already made his decision. It had been pretty damn easy. 

*************************************************************************************************************

Or not so easy if the scowl on Boone’s face was any indication.

It wasn’t even if defaulty “I hate the world and all the people in it scowl”. Cee was used to that one. No this was a genuine pissed off scary sniper Boone scowl.

It was fucking terrifying. 

They had been arguing steadily since Boone had returned from whatever secret military person things it had gone to do. His face had gone from “Boone is somewhat content neutral resting bitch face” to the current murdery face as Cee explained he had planned on taking House up on his offer.

Then the yelling began.

It had started with alot of “are you stupid” and “what are you thinking”. There had even been some unfair accusations of having a death wish thrown in.

Cee felt he had been defending himself pretty okay with “what!?” and “no!” and “well I ….” before being interrupted with more yelling. He was not even going to dignify the death wish accusation with a response. That one was just rude.

At some point they had devolved into just making angry noises and rude gestures at each other.

Cee was getting frustrated, “Damnit Boone if you would just fucking listen!!”

“To what!? Another piss poor justification for your dumbass decisions!”

Cee stepped back from where he had almost been nose to chest with the sniper trying to get some space to calm down, but the other man continued yelling. “I don’t know why I’m still here! All you do is throw yourself at one shitty situation to another.” He began to follow Cee in his retreat, “Then you laugh! Like its a fucking joke, and then blame your bad ideas on the fucking bullet in your brain!”

Boone was now almost leaning over the target of his tirade as Cee’s back hit the wall. “That’s not fair Boone,” he mumbled, dropping his gaze to the floor.

“Damnit kid! Fucking group up and move on!”

Okay. That was it.

Cee raised his chin and met the man’s angry gaze, “Oh. Like you fucking have!” Boone blinked in surprise and stepped back. The courier stabbed a finger into his chest, “You came with me cause you were running. So fuck you for juding me for chasing the reason for my trauma!”

Dead silence.

Fuck, Cee cringed inwardly. He felt his righteous indignation crest then fall as he realized he may have crossed one of Boone’s “do not touch” lines. But dammit he wasn’t wrong either. He tried to hold onto that feeling as he went cold all over.

The man in question said nothing. He just stood still, face completely devoid of any expression. Cee drew his hand back and clutched at the hem of his shirt.

Then Boone tightened his jaw and stepped forward The younger man tensed, but Boone just walked past him. He stopped slightly to grab his rucksack where it had been sitting on the couch. 

He never glanced at Cee. Just shouldered the pack and turned to walk to the elevator doors.

Cee took a hesitant step forward. Maybe he had been a bit too defensive. The man was just looking out for him right?

He should apologize.

Cee opened his mouth to speak

The doors lurched open.

Boone shook his head. Cee could only see the back of the beret move side to side. 

“I’m done kid.”

The doors close with a jerk, leaving Cee frozen and alone in a dusty lobby.

It was over

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back!
> 
> Thank for everyone who stuck around! 
> 
> I plan on trying to get back to a regular bi-weekly update schedule. Barring work and the whole being an adult shit. I keep saying we should just say fuck it to rent and live under a bridge. My doll says no, he’s no fun :3


	15. The Turnabout at the Tops

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armored leather jacket. Check.
> 
> Lucky bandana. Check
> 
> Aviators to hide fact he was in fact not a badass and was exhausted as hell. Check.
> 
> Brass knuckles looted off a raider higher up body. Check.
> 
> Several sticks of mini dynamite. Check. Ugh
> 
> Stimpacks. Check and Check.
> 
> Okay, whooooo, time to get this finished.
> 
> Go team bullet in the brain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Rises from their hermit cave and blinks at the bright light*
> 
> I live!
> 
> Sorry finished training the went on vacation.
> 
> Then found out there had been an issue with my anxiety meds.
> 
> So fun! But back and let’s do this!

Well.

That just happened.

At the beginning of their journey together Cee always figured he was one bad day away from losing Boone as a travel companion. As time has passed and more and more shenanigans have happened he has started thinking that maybe the two of them were tentatively friends. The sniper was sticking around cause they were buddies and stuff.

He couldn’t figure if the fact the only friend he could remember just walked out of him or the realization that maybe they weren’t friends and he had been deluding himself hurt worse.

Both were damn painful.

*************************************************************************************************************  
The night had been spent mostly sitting in bed trying to convince himself to sleep. Even if he was feeling pitiful he still had to enact his vengeance in the morning. Sleep was important for those things. But as soon as he would drift he would remember he was doing it alone and his brain would shake back awake.

When the sun began to spread across the street of New Vegas he had gotten barely a handful of sleep.

He pulled himself out of bed.

Time for the endgame. 

*************************************************************************************************************

After a meal of stale Sugar Bombs chased down by a flat Sunset Sarsaparilla, Cee checked his gear.

The casinos would check him for weapons so he had to get creative with his much loved brass knuckles and the smallest stick of dynamite he had. He went through everything mechanically, the energy he thought he would have in finishing this was absent.

Armored leather jacket. Check.

Lucky bandana. Check  
Aviators to hide fact he was in fact not a badass and was exhausted as hell. Check.

Brass knuckles looted off a raider higher up body. Check.

Several sticks of mini dynamite. Check.

Stimpacks. Check and Check.

Okay, whooooo, time to get this finished.

Go team bullet in the brain.

*************************************************************************************************************  
Exiting the elevator into the lobby he almost ran into the hard chassis of Victor. The smiley cowboy robot wheel back and forth excitedly.

“Hello pardner!”

Cee grimaced, “Hey….Victor”

“You going after that Bad Egg for the Boss?”

As he moved to go around the robot, Cee nodded.

“Well yee-haw!!” The machine did some tight circles, zooming around the dusty carpet before following Cee as he walked out.

“Yep, guess it’s just down to you and fancy pants now. I wouldn’t worry about him! He looked all hat and no cattle if you ask me” Cee just nodded again, damn he was tired. Every step through the lobby was tiring. 

“Just remember to have you ace in the hole and you’ll be good as gold!”

The pair had reached the bottom steps of the Tops. Cee paused. Victor bumped into, “Ill be seeing you soon then pardner” before it turned around and went back into the Tops. 

Victor apparently was only a cheerleader for team bullet in the brain.  
*************************************************************************************************************

The Top wasn’t too far from the Lucky 38. During the short walk Cee had tried to psych himself up but then gave up. The broody look was probably a good disguise, a sad man trying to earn a little of his hard earned caps back. The front lobby security gave a short but brisk pat down, completely missing his hideaway pieces. They dismissed him to move onto eyeing the new potential gambler coming in behind him.

In comparison with the shabby old time elegance of the Lucky 38, the Tops shrieked with color and noise. It was gaudy but fun, putting it all out there without caring how anyone perceived it. The machines rang and whistled, the large open room was a dull roar with overlapping conversations, and faint music could be heard playing in the rare gaps of silence. 

If he hadn’t been a mission of vengeance, Cee would have enjoyed just strolling through the casino floors. Taking in all the sights, sounds and even smells. 

But he didn’t even feel the desire to be distracted.

At the window he traded some currency he got while scrounging the dead bodies and places he had come upon. Caesars coins which might as well be good for something and the paper money the NCR was pushing hard to replace caps. He wasn’t going to waste caps on this. He found a table with the best sight lines of the floor and drudge up a smile. 

“Evening fellas, mind if I join?”

*************************************************************************************************************

Time was hard to gauge on the floor. 

There were no windows to the outside or clocks. In his very short memory, he had never carried a time piece. His only real way of knowing that time had passed significantly was the small piles of chips that grew and shrank at the table. His table partners came and went. The dealer was replaced once before his target finally appeared.

Cee froze as the man and his entourage entered the floor from an employees only door. The man was wearing the same damn jacket and had a smirk a mile wide on his face.

In his mind, Cee could almost hear the whisper, truth is, the game was rigged from the start. Followed by the crack of a pistol. So deep he was in the memory that the gentle push to his elbow startled him, he dropped his cards and almost fell off his stool. The culprit was the woman to his left, she looked embarrassed for him as he stammered out an apology.

“Sorry y'all, too much excitement not enough sleep” he chuckled awkwardly. Kindly the table smiled and laughed along, he scooped up his winnings and slid a few chips over to tip the dealer. The stoic dealer nodded and went back to dealing cards as soon as Cee stepped away from the table. 

From the corner of his eye he tracked the checkered jacket as he made his way around the perimeter of the room. As he got closer he made it obvious he was putting his chips in his pocket. When the security guard finished their glance over, he then tightened his hands around the brass knuckles tucked away in a secret pocket. 

He struggled to keep his approach casual, just a gambler on his way to the bank of elevators just past the group. Nervous energy bubbled up his chest every foot he got closer. His left hand had a death grip on his lighter and his other hand moved from the knuckles to the dynamite. 

Closer.

Closer.

…..

Fuck!

He had only been a few feet behind the burliest member of the group, using them to hide his approach. When suddenly his shield went down on one knee to tie his shoe. In that minute, Benny glanced his way, laughing at some joke unheard. Their eyes met, Benny froze and the smile dropped off his face.

The both just looked at each other.

Benny’s entourage noticed the interaction and began to glare at Cee, making motions for possible hidden weapons. Cee braced himself, getting slaughtered in a casino brawl, sure why not that's what's going to finally kill him. 

Then Benny laughed.

And everyone was confused.

“Whoa whoa whoa!” he exclaimed, motioning his guys back, “sorry fellas, was just surprised to see my old pal here!” Benny walked up and slung an arm around Cee’s shoulders. He gave him a rough half hug, “this guy here, wild guy that he is, wandered off in search of dames and fortune. No letters, no calls, figure he was dead, bam six feet under”.

Benny grinned into his face and gave him a shake, “should’ve known the desert was too chicken wuss to ever kill this guy, right?!” The other men looked at each other, then laughed. Benny chuckled and leaned close, he hissed into the couriers ear, “I hit what I am aiming for. Guess you had brains to spare...or just thick skulled.”

Cee tried to shrug him off but the man just held onto him tighter, the hiss went on, “Naw sweetheart, you and me need to talk. Man to man.” Cee felt him move a hand to his chest, “the key is for my suite, gimme thirty to get rid of the boys here and then we can have a private tete a tete. Ya cool?”

The man had pulled back just enough to meet his eyes. Cee grimaced, he had been out maneuvered. The slimy piece of shit. He could try to take Benny out in a blaze of glory, but the men around him were too aware of him now. He may not get a chance to take the fucker down before they intervened. His only chance now was to go up to the suite.

He gave a sharp nod and a forced smile.

Benny gave him a fake smile back, “Well pal I got business to attend to. But hey talk to my guy and we’ll get together, tear the strip up like old times.” He squeezed him tight both as a warning and to keep the facade up before releasing him. He shot the courier double finger guns and winked. It took everything Cee had not to sneer at his retreating backside.

Gods he fucking hated that guy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still convinced no one reads these so just going to ramble.
> 
> N7 day coming up, going to get drunk and play Mass Effect.


	16. Peacetime in the Presidential Suite

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damn...House was on to me from the word go” he gave a bitter laugh, “and here I thought I was being so damn clever.”
> 
> “Not clever enough”
> 
> Benny gave him a tip of his glass, “Nice teeth baby, but true. Once you got vertical how’d you track me down?”
> 
> Cee hunched his shoulders, his left hand was now in its pockets slowly wiggling on the brass knuckles, “You got a lot of questions, I’m persistent.”
> 
> “Yeah...that’s one word for it” the man gave him a calculating look that Cee returned with a glare. The pair had their silent stare down before Benny broke his gaze away and chuckled, “I guess that's enough scratching around at first base. So I guess the million dollar….hell that platinum question is which way is the wind going to blow?”

He needed some air.

Everytime he tried to get a breath in, it seemed he was almost choking on the heavy humidity of the casino. It was filled with smoke and the stale tang of nervous sweat. Each attempt at an inhale made his rolling stomach clench. He did a quick turn and walked as fast as he could to the lobby. Pausing only to pick up his weapons from the check. The door person smiled blankly and opened the doors before he rushed right into them. 

The bright afternoon sun blinded him as he fumbled to shove the sunglasses back down onto his nose. The air outside was stifling, but only smelled of baking sand. Unfocused, he took wobbling steps away from the front facade of the casino to the less crowded side of the building. Passerbys ignored him, figuring he was a loser drawing his sorrows with cheap booze, as he searched for a quiet corner in the shade. 

Cee was fine being ignored. He really didn’t have the energy to reassure anyone that: yes, he was okay and no, he didn’t need help and please, leave him the fuck alone.

Rounding the sharp corner, he found a patch of empty wall with some miniculse shading. He slumped against it, knees bent and hung his head. 

His stomach still felt tight. 

His knees quavered.

But damn he was refusing to have an attack here. He had to be on top of his game.

Just breathe in and out, slowly.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

He missed Boone.

Wait, no he didn’t. The jerk left him high and dry.

Fuck him.

Though….

Wait, none of that. Get over it. He wasn’t even really a friend, just a guy looking for an escape.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Time passed as he continued prompting himself to breathe, arguing with himself every few cycles of breathing. His inner conversation was interrupted by a pair of dusty but nice shoes entering his vision.

Cee shot up, his back hitting the wall painfully. But it was just a man (he had hoped it was ...no not him) dressed in a three piece suit, fedora, and dark sunglasses. The man just looked him over in the silence. Wincing, Cee tried a smile. “Uh….hey...this your...uhm...wall?”

The man just smirked in response. “A pleasure to meet you again Courier”

Cee just blinked, the voice sounded familiar but he couldn’t put a face to it. He shrugged, “sorry, my memory is...well shit...have we met?”

The man just continued with the oily smirk of someone who knew something Cee as sure as fuck didn’t know. “Why my good fellow, we have. But I can understand why my visage is unfamiliar to you.” Cee frowned, where the hell had he met this guy before. The man stepped closer, his voice dropped a little lower, “Yes, I believe it was in such a wicked place we met. The long gone town of Nipton”

“Oh fuck” was barely a whisper out of Cee’s mouth and he tried to back up into the wall, “you’re...the Dead Fox Man.”

The Dead Fox Man did not look happy with the name. He frowned, “I believe I gave you my name”, his face smoothed out to a placid smile, “no matter, here in this...place you will address me as Mr. Fox, am I clear?” 

The question was polite,but the implied threat was very clear. Cee swallowed hard and nodded.

Mr. Fox stepped back and brushed his lapels, “Do settle, if my task here was to kill you, your corpse would already be rotting in some hidden corner of this wretched city.”

“Then why the fuck are you bothering me!?” Oh good his dumbass courage was back.

The man looked unimpressed and raised an eyebrow, “Why I am here to bestow an honor upon you. The eyes of the mighty Caesar are upon you. He has seen your works and hears the stories being told about you.”

Cee was a bit creeped out now, the man had a soft smile on his face as he spoke about Caesar. Almost a wistful worship for a man even Cee knew was a monster. 

“My lord requires your presence at his camp, at Fortification Hill.”

“I’m going to have to stop you there Dead….Mr. Fox.” Cee stood up from his defensive hunch on the wall, “there is no way I am walking into a Legion camp. Best case ya’ll kill me quick, worst I’m a slave or crucified or fuck why not both!” he sneered, “I have some survival instinct.”

The Legionnaire gave him a condescending smile, “Of course, it speaks of your intelligence to not just wander into our camps. My lord has already taken this in account,” he reached into his jacket. Cee tensed and his hand shot to the gun on his hip. The man just shook his head, “none of that now, again I am not here to end your life….at least not know.” Smiling still he pulled his hand out slowly, he reached out and opened his fist.

Laying in his palm was a small gold medallion. Larger than any Legion currency, it was stamped with a familiar standard of a bull.

“This is his mark. It will grant you safe conduct to and from our lands. Providing you enter and exit peacefully.”

The man just waited patiently. Cee got the feeling he would wait, but at some point he would take the courier out at the knees and jam the damn mark down his throat. Cee plucked it gingerly out of the offered palm. The large coin was heavy, warmed by the desert heat and the body of the man who gave it.

Cee looked up, but just as he had appeared, Mr. Fox Man had disappeared just as suddenly.

*************************************************************************************************************

The encounter had left him shaken, but had calmed down his current Benny related anxiety. His addled brain was now trying to multitask for two large sources of stress. Eventually his brain just ran out of fucks to give and shut down. The temporary calm was a relief.

Cee shuffled back into the lobby and gave the smiling staff his weapons. Well all except his hold out pieces. It felt like hours since he had spoken to Benny so surely at least thirty minutes had passed. Looking around he quickly found the signs with helpful arrows pointing to the elevator bays. He made his way to the far side of the casino, weaving and ducking through the crowd. The day was bleeding into late afternoon, so the floor was even more full of desperate hopefuls.

Making it mostly unscathed, he found the elevator marked PRIVATE:HIGH ROLLERS ONLY. His stomach lurched as the elevator did and the both began the slow rise to the top floor

*************************************************************************************************************

The room was….overdone. Okay no it was tacky as fuck.

Scarlet plush carpet clashed with faded dark purple curtains. The fixings on the furniture were either faded gold or had a brassy sheen trying to pretend to be gold. It was a maze of bad taste with one room leading to another then another.

Foyer.

Formal sitting.

Card room.

Hallway for bedrooms.

Each new one made him even more nervous. At first the emptiness had reassured him that Benny was keeping this just between the two of them. But the deeper into the suite he went the more his paranoia began to crank up. 

Each muffled step seemed to boom, giving away his location.

Dining Room.

Kitchen.

Bathroom.

Then he heard it. Strained music, too quiet for him to make out the song. He paused, straining to hear what direction it came from. In the silence the music continued, then followed a creak of floor and a thump. All sounds of a living being existing in this space. 

Cee reached into his pockets to grip the small tube of dynamite and began to make his way towards the sounds. Each cautious step made the music louder until he heard the strains of man crooning away about something having to give. He paused in front of the worn wooden door and took a deep breath in. With its release he reached a hand and slowly turned the knob.

When the catch disengaged he threw it open and rushed to the other side of the door jamb.

No bullets came flying through.

He leaned over to look into the room.

Like the others it was large and tackily decorated. Two large billiard tables took up most of the space with a small bar tucked into a back corner, and there is where Benny was perched on a bar stool. One hand raised with a glass as he looked on bemused. Thrown across the chair next to him was his checkered suit jacket. 

The man slowly put down the drink then threw his arms out. “See baby, no tricks. Just you, and me, and privacy” Cee grimaced, he gave a curt nod and entered the room Giving the other man a wide berth. Benny seem amused by his actions, chuckled and picked back up his drink. “I got to ask dollface….how are you still alive?”

Taking a seat, with several in between them as a buffer, Cee shrugged, “a securitron dug me up.”

“Damn...House was on to me from the word go” he gave a bitter laugh, “and here I thought I was being so damn clever.”

“Not clever enough”

Benny gave him a tip of his glass, “Nice teeth baby, but true. Once you got vertical how’d you track me down?”

Cee hunched his shoulders, his left hand was now in its pockets slowly wiggling on the brass knuckles, “You got a lot of questions, I’m persistent.”

“Yeah...that’s one word for it” the man gave him a calculating look that Cee returned with a glare. The pair had their silent stare down before Benny broke his gaze away and chuckled, “I guess that's enough scratching around at first base. So I guess the million dollar….hell that platinum question is which way is the wind going to blow?”

Cee….had not been expecting a question like that. He just looked at the man confused. “Why shouldn’t I just kill you here and now?” So much for trying to surprise, but Benny didn’t seem shaken at all by the questions. 

“Well doll, you got a crazy drop on me here, that’s for sure. If killing’s what you came for, this would be the time.” He leaned back, his face looking almost chiding, “but baby, you'd be disappointing me” Oh it was a look of disappointment….okay? “All the trouble you had to have gone through to arrange this shin-dig. Must be something more your after?”

That was the fucking question.

The desire for answers and vengeance had fueled his entire journey. Up until some of the answers he got began to wear on him. His death was nothing more than an inconvenience. In the end no one had really given it much thought, until him being alive was either useful or annoying. 

Was Boone right, was he chasing a death wish? Was he so damnedly determine to convince himself would get something like closure or peace?

Cee wasn’t sure how this was going to end. Benny would maybe be dead, or maybe Cee would finally be put permanently in the ground. But would either conclusion really end the noise in his head?

He sighed, “What are you thinking Benny?”

*************************************************************************************************************  
Cee had to admit, when he wasn’t holding a gun to his head while being tied up in front of his own grave, the man could be very charming. He had spun a story about how Mr. House was the bad guy here. Trying to keep New Vegas under his thumb with his robots. How the Platinum Chip was the key to the whole plan of freedom and riches. 

But if he, and he meant we, had it New Vegas would be free….under the Chairmen. However the Chairmen were all about personal freedom, they were the good ole’ boys in this scenario.

Yeah sure, different words but same spiel. 

Cee got the sense that sure the Chairmen would say they were all about equality and freedom, but it would come at a nice cut of the town’s profits. At some point during the sales pitch Cee drifted off, planning on just getting the chip back, burying out in the desert somewhere and just letting these two fucks kill themselves.

An independent New Vegas. Sounded pretty good. 

“...a ring-a-ding baby and that’s all she wrote.” Damn he had spaced out during the entire “trust me I’m the good guy speech.”

New plan. 

Let Benny think they are in this together  
Find the chip  
Run the fuck out of Vegas with the chip  
Bury it in a fucking Deathclaw nest  
Come back and help New Vegas be independent while these two kill each other

Always nice to have goals.

His mind felt like it was firing all at once, “Sure Benny, whatever. I just want this shit to end. Preferably with no more bullets in my. I have reached my quota.” His “partner” chortled and slapped him on the shoulder, “No problem baby.”

Benny stood up and walked over to a safe installed into the wall near the bar. “I’ll keep you on retainer, you run a few jobs for me. Getting paid of course, then we plan” He whistled jauntily as he spun the dial, “you’ll see, doll, this will be like taking candy from a baby.” A small bag was tossed onto the bar top, Cee flinched. “Chill baby, just some caps to get you going.”  
The man kept grinning at him as he flung his jacket over one shoulder, “no stress babycakes. I’m going to get back to business downstairs. You stay, relax. We’ll meet up later, maybe dinner, and plot our course” 

Walking backwards he winked and threw a finger gun. Cee just gave him a wan smile until the door shut. 

Well shit, what they hell had he gotten himself into now?

*************************************************************************************************************

He was too wired to relax. After fidgeting a bit he decided to snoop.

The wall safe was locked up tight, he broke several pins before pouting and giving up. The room was pretty sparse, just the pool tables and a few couches. Gods even with the little bitin the room they were still garish as all hell. So after he made it around the room he decided to investigate behind the bar. 

Most the bottles decorating the back wall were pretty but empty. The nooks and crannies were empty except dust and one abandoned cigarette pack, which he pocketed. Kneeling down he checked for any hidey holes. He had just found some caps when the door violently kicked open.

Cee froze, he could hear several individuals rush in and the clicking of guns priming. 

“He’s not in here”

“I can see that fuck wit! You two go check the last two rooms. You and you, with me.”

He could hear receding footsteps as some of them left the room. Making his breath quiet and shallow he hoped the fuckers would just leave. But the soft fall of shoes on carpets meant they were probably searching the room. Moving slowly, he reached into his jacket pockets to remove the two stubby sticks of dynamite he had there. Slowly he placed them on the floor and then reached into the breast pocket to remove his lighter.

Straining his ears to get a sense of where his attackers were, he gently opened the lights cover. Cee paused, the moment he tried to strike it they would know he was in here. He had to make sure it lit the first time and be ready. 

Slow breath in.

Slow breath out.

His thumb flicked the wheel.

He ignored the shout and just focused. 

Flame lit.

Pick up the first stick.

Light wick.

Throw.

The sizzling sound as it flew in an arch over the bar caused more shouting. Cee hunched down and grabbed the second stick.

Flame still lit.

Light wick.

Throw.

He made sure to throw this one more to the left of the room. His hands blindly fumbled in the other pocket before they hit on warm mental. Fingers slid through the holes in one, then the other. Armed he put his hands over his ears and waited.

The bar was solidly made and bolted to the floor. However the concussive force of the sticks exploding so close to it made it actually shudder hard one direction. Which for Cee was bad news since it was the direction he was in. The shelves hit him hard in the ribs and knocked over his crouching form. 

Groaning he reflexively grabbed his side, hoping it hadn’t cracked something because right now he had to get on his feet. Using the still standing bar top, he hauled himself up. 

The room was in shambles. The furniture on the far side of the room was just scorched a bit but the poor bar stools were just large splinters now. The pool tables were missing huge chunks, and currently splattered with blood and other things he didn’t want to think about. 

One man was still standing, but was just blinking dazedly. Grimaching Cee rushed around the bar, trying to ignore the shooting pain in his side. The man seemed to wink back into alertness just as Cee was within reaching distance. He raised his gun and went to fire,but the shot went a bit wild from his possible double vision. The bullet just to be a team player, skimmed a trail of pain along the couriers bicep.

Cee gave a shout, but stayed on his feet. He braced himself and swung. He may not have the muscle the other guy had, but when you had metal decorating your punch you just needed to hit a good spot. And he did, right into the side of the man’s face. As his head jerked from the hit, he went gray and continued the momentum all the way to the floor.

Panting Cee looked around, he began to feel kinda smug. Last man standing bitches. The feeling lasted until more shouting began and he remembered the other two guys.

Oh….fuck.

As the pair fought to get through the doorway at the same time, while firing, Cee clumsily went to dive behind the ruin of one of the pool tables. A bullet tore threw his hip as several others dug into the table. Dragging his body to safety he kept up a litany of “oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck” and he patted his pockets desperatly. 

No dynamite.

No gun.

He felt his body growing heavy from the pain and hopelessness. This is where he was going to die, right as he was letting go and trying to do the right thing. In a tacky ass hotel room gunned down by some fucking wannabe gangsters. 

Nevermind, it wasn’t hopelessness, it was rage.

Gritting his teeth, he looked around. Just floor and remnants of furniture, but as he swept the small area he could he saw that one of the dead men’s hands were outstretched to him. His gun lay just within reach.

More bullets hailed overhead as he stretched, fingers just brushing over the dull metal. 

Just a bit further.

A lucky bullet hit the floor near his hand, he flinched but kept reaching. Finally his fingers were able to crook over the barrel and pull it to him. Cradling it to his chest he breathed heavily, he had a chance. Just had to not fuck it up. The bullets kept coming as he quickly checked the clip, mostly fully, and primed it. 

Hanging around a former sniper had done wonders for his gun knowledge. So yeah, fuck you Boone. With that quip in his head he turned and flopped onto his side into the open.

Luckily his wild hope of the men not looking down , cause when does danger come from the floor, came blessedly true. They were still focused on flushing him out or whittling the damn table down to get to him; they didn’t even notice him. 

He fired.

And fired.

And fired.

Until the gun clicked empty

One man lay prone, only his feet could be seen in the rectangle cut out of the door.

The second had gone down to one knee, but was now trying to reach his dropped weapon. Cee scrambled up, but dropped as the pain flared in his hip. Fuck. He saw the man getting closer to his own weapon so he struggled up to sitting and did what he only felt he had left to do.

He threw his empty gun at the man’s head.

*************************************************************************************************************

Benny was a slimy son of a bitch snake.

After tying up the two unconscious men, Cee had rummaged around for any medical supplies. He had only come up with some high proof alcohol and bandages. They worked on the scrape on his bicep, but he could only pour alcohol into the hole in his hip while trying not to scream. Whoo, at least it was sorta clean now.

Searching the bodies he had better luck, a couple of syringes of Med-X. The purple liquid made his body feel floating, which was good for the pain. Made it hard to focus on anything else. So he was just sitting on the charred couch letting his thoughts just drift.

It had all been a set up. Get him alone, see what he knew, then BAM. 

What an asshole, Cee felt like an idiot. Should’ve just killed the rat bastard.

Yeah but his karma was a-ok now. He tried to put his brain….feels in a better place.

Wonder why no one has investigated. 

It’s all so stupid.

His eyes closed.  
*************************************************************************************************************

Cee woke with a start, then cried and slumped over as all the pain from his sudden movement ripped through him. He hadn’t meant to go to sleep, but damn no sleep and drugs had doomed him. He sat back up gingerly, picking up another dose of Med-X he administered half a dose. 

Once the drugs kicked in, this time only dulling the pain and making it slightly hard to focus, he looked around. He didn’t want to go back down to the main floor, fuck knows if they were waiting for him. He limped around, mostly finding a bathroom where he tried to clean up a bit and an empty pantry.

Then he stumbled into the master bedroom.

It was the only room that looked lived in. Clothes in messy piles on the floor, empty bottles on every available surface, full ashtrays, and dangerous leaning towers of dirty plates. This is where Benny lived. He slowly walked around, opening drawers and poking around. Nothing too exciting, some drugs, porn mags, underwear, but nothing giving away his evil master plan. 

Shuffling along he opened one door to find the nice but dirty master bathroom, he quickly shut it as his nose wrinkled from the mildew smell. So door number two, he opened it and stared. It had once been a closet, but now was a closet with a giant hole in the back wall. 

Well, why the fuck not, and he walked through the hole.  
*************************************************************************************************************

The room past the hole was...weird, like out of one of those science fiction comics that Cee had found lying around and read out of boredom. The walls were crumbling and the floor had concerning sized holes in it. But along the walls ran tables and banks of computers, the whole room had a low buzz from them running. Screens flickered green and blue casting weird shadows everywhere.

Tucked into a corner, a deactivate securitron was slumped over. Cee moved closer, he hadn’t seen one turned off before. 

Then it’s face screen flickered on and it straightened. Cee backed up quickly, but tripped on the cables littered across the floor. It's intimidating….smiling face? Cee just stared at it as it rolled up to him. Death by smiles, amazing.

“Hey!” it chirped happily at him, “Hi, there! Good to meet you! What can I do for you today?” 

“Uhm….hey?” it rolled around a bit but waited patiently, “uh...have you seen Benny by chance?” It was a shot in the dark but why not ask.

If securitron could emote, this one would. It wiggled and its screen flickered quickly, “Sure! He came through here in a big hurry!” it's frame drooped a bit, “didn’t even stop to say hello!” perking up again it continued, “I think he went down his secret escape elevator out there in the hall!”

“Oh...okay thank you.” the machine whirled in a tight circle, “You’re welcome!”

So far so good, might as well keep going , “So, Benny stole a platinum chip from me. Have you seen it?”

The robot paused, then scooted closer, “Sure! Benny had me look at it a bunch of times! It’s a data storage device! Kind of like a holotape! Isn’t that neat!!!!??? But a lot more advance!” it paused and the screen flickering happened again, “As for what’s on it….some of Mr. House’s data transmission made it sound like the chip could upgrade his defenses….somehow.”

It drooped a bit again, “that’s just a guess though, sorry.”

“Anything else you can tell me about it? Please?”

The machine grew animated again, “Yes I can! The chip’s just a proprietary format! You’d need special hardware to read the data on it!” It hummed for a moment, “There are two locations with non-standard hardware on the network!” A drum roll sound came out of its speakers, “The Lucky 38! And an underground facility at Fortification Hill!”

“Do you have a ...name?”

It threw an arm over its face, “My apologies, I didn’t introduce myself! I’m a PDQ-88b Securitron, but you can call me Yes Man!”

Cee smiled, “nice to meet you Yes Man.”

“And nice to meet you!”

*************************************************************************************************************

Cee almost felt bad leaving the robot alone in the room.

They had chatted a bit, mostly about Benny and how he had come in his possession. The automaton was very helpful, Benny had never thought anyone else would come into his little hideout so he never programmed Yes Man to only be helpful to him. It gave him the suggestion to go to Fortification Hill since Benny most likely headed that way. Cee had grimaced at that but reluctantly agreed it was the best idea.

Soon the Med-X began to wear off and the pain induced nausea mixed with dizziness was making it hard to not just pass out onto the floor. 

Knowing his luck he would find one of the holes and just go all the way through to the basement. 

He promised the sulking robot he would be back as soon as he could, even asked if you could bring it anything from outside. That had cheered it up a bit as it asked for holotapes and a radio. Agreeing, Cee hit himself up again with another miniscule dose of Med-X as he headed out of the closet.

With Yes Man assuring him Benny had exited via his secret lair exit, Cee was feeling confident none of the other staff had any idea what was going on. He strolled through the destroyed room, checked on the passed out men (still alive, he would drop an anonymous note at the front desk to have them check on the suite) and made his way out.

*************************************************************************************************************  
His bruised, blood stain visage only got a few eyebrows raised in his direction. Most were busy with trying to win or get drunk. Since he was causing no issues and seemed intent on leaving, he was a non issue. Especially compared to the drunk argument at the craps table or the woman who was obviously cheating at the poker tables. Security was bearing down on her as Cee passed them.

Before leaving the suite he had found a stub of a pencil and some paper to write a note so the poor guys upstairs didn’t die from dehydration. Should be easy to just slip it to someone at the desk.

The roar of the room faded as he got close to the desk, however he heard two angry male voices as he got closer. He kept his head down, not wanting to draw any attention until he was home free. The men continued to angrily hiss at each other while he used the commotion to slip the paper on top of the check in staff’s pile of papers. 

Good deed done he turned to leave.

“Kid!?”

Cee froze, in front of the door stood a well dressed member of the Chairmen looking pissed but confused and….

“Boone?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m still here!
> 
> More random thoughts, fuck this was long. Actions scenes are tough! But hey Boone’s back!


	17. Is This A Bad Time To Breakdown?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stupid, stupid, stupid. 
> 
> He dropped his bag on the ground. The late afternoon sky was fading into night. The lights of the strip were blinking on with an electrical buzz. He stood on the sidewalk of the Lucky 38 seething at the stupidity of the idiot he chose to hang around with and his own stupidity for choosing to follow him.
> 
> Stupid stupid stupid stupid….damnit.
> 
> Well shit, he had stormed out of his bunk for the night and there was no way in hell he was going back in there to deal with that. Even if he had the energy to actively ignore the other man, he didn’t want to even be in his presence. It made him even more furious thinking about it. Huffing picked up his duffle sack. With any luck he could throw himself on the mercy of the local barracks. They would surely have a spare cot for a former soldier.

Stupid.

Boone simmered on that word on the entire ride down.

Stupid, stupid.

He stormed out of the car,brushing off the robots with a glare and kept walking until he was out of the doors.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. 

He dropped his bag on the ground. The late afternoon sky was fading into night. The lights of the strip were blinking on with an electrical buzz. He stood on the sidewalk of the Lucky 38 seething at the stupidity of the idiot he chose to hang around with and his own stupidity for choosing to follow him.

Stupid stupid stupid stupid….damnit.

Well shit, he had stormed out of his bunk for the night and there was no way in hell he was going back in there to deal with that. Even if he had the energy to actively ignore the other man, he didn’t want to even be in his presence. It made him even more furious thinking about it. Huffing picked up his duffle sack. With any luck he could throw himself on the mercy of the local barracks. They would surely have a spare cot for a former soldier. 

*************************************************************************************************************  
During the long, hot dusty walk out of the Strip he had continued seething

The thoughts would ramp up with “what the hell is he thinking” and “god a fucking death wish” then he would reassure himself that “its not my fucking problem anymore” and “good riddance”. He would have a few minutes of peace before the whole cycle started up again. 

This entire crazy adventure had just been an excuse to get out of Novac for a while. He figured he would kill some legionnaires, get bored, and bail on the courier to head home. Instead he had been involved in NCR plots, conspiracies on the strip, and bullshit political maneuvers. Then as a fucking finale the kid was ready to go meet his failed murderer face to face and make demands. 

Just let shit stay dead.

Then he remembered the kid would have died if left in his shallow grave.

Shit bad analogy for this.

*************************************************************************************************************

They had been able to find a cot for him to crash in. 

The rest of the night he distracted himself from his circling thoughts by talking shop with the members of the First Recon squad stationed there. He’d commiserate with their griping about the constant run-ins with the local Fiend group. His mind a little fuzzy from the flask being passed around the unwilling thoughts of if Cee had been there they would have found themselves wrangled into running a mission. 

See, it's good to have left. Now he had peace. No running off to help people who can sure as hell help themselves.

The smug feeling lasted until he remembered how destroyed the kid had looked after dealing with the standoff in Boulder City. He growled and helped himself to another pull from the bootleg whisky being passed around.

*************************************************************************************************************

Morning brought a hangover and a feeling of dread.

Waking up he had been startled at first to not hear Cee’s soft snores (the kid was alway offended when Boone brought up the fact). He had gone to get up, but the nausea and sharp pain in his head made it more of an awkward flailing roll off the cot. Groaning on the ground he then remembered, he wasn’t with Cee anymore. 

Slowly getting to his feet, he lurched out of the tent. 

Wincing in the bright light, he looked around semi-blindly for any source of relief. He almost whimpered when he saw the nearby water pump.

The cold water was a bracing relief, cupping his hands he drank handful after handful until he felt like he would throw up. He then gently squatted down and placed his whole head under the gushing stream. His mind went empty with the simple pleasure of cold dulling his aching head. 

He stood in front of the pump he had used to splash cold water on his face, wincing now at the bright sunlight since he had left his glasses in the tent. His shirt was soaked, but all he could focus on was the returning sense of guilt.

The kid could be dead already.

He could easily imagine him strolling up to the casino demanding entry only to be ushered to a back room, overpower and his body tossed into the desert. 

The image of Cee’s sightless eyes did what the badly distilled whiskey had not managed to do this morning. 

He emptied the meager contents of his stomach, mostly water and bile. 

Spitting up stomach acid Boone made a decision.

*************************************************************************************************************  
Trudging back from the fort to the casino was a nightmare.

The heat and dust were bad when you were in pretty good shape.

Wracked with guilt and haunted by a hangover it was hell. He hadn’t even bothered to change clothes, just grabbed his stuff and took off. The once refreshing wet cloth now was creating a sauna effect on his skin and turning the dust he was collecting into a thin sheen of mud.

Boone tightened his jaw and kept moving.

Through Freesides.

Through the checkpoint.

Up the fucking stairs to the casino doors.

Through the lobby, tracking mud and dirt with every step.

Up the fucking slow, lurching elevator. Clenching hit teeth so not to throw up on the threadbare carpet.

The doors opened and he called out, wincing at his own volume, “Kid!....Kid!?.....Cee??”

The suite was empty.

His fumbling search turned up that most of Cee’s things were still there. The only things missing were a set of clothes, his jacket, the bandana he swore was lucky and a few small weapons. Boone looked around like the kid would just pop out of the bathroom any minute. But the suite stayed silent.

“Fuck….”

*************************************************************************************************************  
One problem with robots was unless they were programmed to feel fear you couldn't intimidate them. 

No amount of stoney, hangover induced glaring was getting him anywhere. The securitrons guarding the lobby had advised him they didn’t know where Cee was or when he had left. When he had moved to verbal threats they finally had had enough of him. It took three of them to finally get a good grip to haul him physically out of the lobby.

Dragging him out just as Victor rolled in.

The robot cowboy almost perked up with Boone hollered his name. 

“Why howdy! You’re the courier amigo, sorry he’s not in but I sure as heck can take a message”

Struggling in the pincer grip Boone continued yelling, “Where the hell is he then!?”

The robot cowboy took pity on him and wheeled his way behind them. “Why he moseyed out of here some hours ago, went to face that bad egg Mr. Fancy Pants over at the Tops.” Before he could express any kind of gratitude the machines opened the cracked glass doors and shoved him out. *************************************************************************************************************

“Sir there are no weapons allowed in the Casino”

Boone snarled. He was hungover, dusty from being dragged into the streets and dumped. The man was fucking done with this day. “I just need to find someone” he continued moving.

He ignored the panicked yelling of “Sir! Sir!” and “Security!” as he pushed through the crowd in the entrance way Wasn’t too hard, mid-afternoon there weren't too many hopefuls or down on their luck losers. The floor’s jangling cachopy of noise burrowed into his aching head, but clenched his jaw again and looked across the room.

No courier. 

Fuck. 

He could still hear the yelling behind him as a man joined in, “where the hell is security!?” Maybe they were further in, he stepped down onto the main floor when a hand grabbed him. Whirling around he grabbed the other man’s wrist and quickly brought him down to the ground. They yelling turned to panicked screaming, though he had to give his attacker some respect. His arm was wrenched painfully, but he wasn’t screaming. Taking sharp, panting breathes in he was trying to diplomatic while in a lot of pain, “Look buddy were all here to have a good time, if you could just…. come back with me to the counter we can get this figured out.” he gave a wobbly customer service smile, “it's a big place, ….if you’re looking fo….r your friend we can help.”

Boone sneered down at him, “find me fucking Benny then we can talk!”

The man’s face dropped from an attempt at neutral to dismayed, “Why...what did Benny do now?!”

Boone released the man’s arm, but before he could react he pulled him up by the shirt front and growled into his face, “Where the fuck is he!?” The man finally had enough himself and pushed at him, “I don’t fucking know! Get the fuck off me!” They began to tussle back and forth. Finally the man broke the hold and stepped back, trying to smooth down his shirt front. “Look,...sir, what every Benny did...it most likely had nothing to do with the Tops.”

He smoothed his hair back, “Walk with me, let’s get this figured out no need to make a bigger scene.” Following the man Boone snarked, “I don’t think you security is coming any time soon, no point in stalling” He was ignored until they made it back to the front counter. Ignoring Boone the man gave the frightened woman at the counter a gentle smile, “Dolores, calm down it's just a misunderstanding. If you could be a doll and ring up the security office for me please….and then the presidential?”

The woman’s eyes sidled over to the glaring Boone, then back to her boss as she nodded. She quickly busied herself with the phone. Sighing the man turned back to Boone, “Look, I don’t know anything that Benny has been up to outside of here. I’m the second in command, but doesn’t mean he tells me shit. If he's got your friend knocked up, or lured them here with a good time, well i’m sure they are an adult and can handle Benny.”

Boone got back into his space, “Your fucking boss tried to kill my friend asshole.”

Before the fight could get wound again he heard his name, “Boone?” in surprise stepped back and turned his head.

The kid was standing there, looking like shit and holding one arm close to his body. The skin around one eye was starting to turn purple, lacerations were all over his hands and face, and he was bleeding through his shirt and jeans onto the lobby floor. 

Cee just stood looking at him, seemingly like he couldn’t believe he was there. The bitter thought passed through his head and he moved towards the other man, well whose thought is that?

The dandy forgotten Boone rushed the few feet to Cee. He went to reach for him but then stopped when Cee flinched. Looking him over he croaked out “Fuck kid, we need to get you to a doc.” Cee blinked then looked down at his ruined clothes, “yeah, i guess. I think I have a couple bullets in me.”

“Jesus!”

He shrugged, the winced “I need to…”

Boone then grabbed him gently, “no, you need to go to a doc. We’ll figure out the rest later.” He gently herded them towards the door. When the man from before tried to stop them, he just got a glare as the pair exited the casino

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live!!! 
> 
> Awww Boone felt guilty.
> 
> Sorry for such a delay this chapter. This one just was kicking my ass. At one point I was just writing just to get at least something down!!!!
> 
> Fucking writers block.


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